The Crimson Dragon
by CII
Summary: Jonathan Long has a secret bigger than his wife Susan's, or his son Jake's and his daughter Haley's. But when the secret's out, can Jonathan protect his family from evils that are greater than the American Dragon has ever faced? R&R please! Completed!
1. Forward

**Forward**

This story is set in an alternate universe. I don't own Jake Long—just my own ideas about it.

A thousand years ago, magic was known by all, dragon, human, ork, troll, elf, dwarf…but then a terrible war happened which separated the magical from the mundane. In order to keep the magical world safe, the magical creatures went into hiding. Though, at that time, magic was much stronger.

The guardians of the magical world were much different then as well, a species of dragon very different from what roams the land today. These beasts were what the legends were made of, gigantic monsters hundreds of feet in length with wingspans that could easily blot out the sun and with one flap can send a torrent wind towards any foe. These creatures were the wielders of the primordial magic flowed directly from them and permeated the land, allowing wizards to cast spells. But these dragons had long since disappeared, leaving behind a new species of guardians—which are the dragons who live on today.

There are two types of dragons. The first type is the Ancients. Ancients have the longest life spans of all magical and mortal creatures. They live to about 6 thousand years naturally, but some have found a way to ascend to immortality—through the Rite of Ascension by eating their hoards. And in there are three different types. There are the Luung Dragons, lithe, sinuous, serpent-like dragons that live in the areas of Asia and Oceana. These dragons have been known to be benevolent and honorable, even helpful to the 'lesser races'. Though they are benevolent, like any dragon, they can be easily brought to anger and can send violent storms to destroy the land if insulted. Within the Luung category were three different sub-races, Hematite, Jade, and Pearl. They could shape shift into human forms, walking among the 'lesser races' undetected. Luung Dragons reached around 100 feet in length.

The second type of Ancient were also benevolent in nature, but their forms differ from the Luung—looking more like dragons of Western history. These were the Metallic Dragons. There were five sub-races, Gold, Silver, Bronze, Brass, and Copper. Gold Dragons were aloof and arrogant, but kind as well. They could shape shift into human or demihumans form and hold that shape nearly indefinitely. Gold Dragons often were seen in parts of Asia and around Russia, making friends with Luung Dragons. The Gold Dragons are the longest of the Ancients, reaching around 250 feet in length. The Silver Dragons, often referred to as the 'boy-scouts' of the Ancients, were helpful when dealing with the 'lesser races'. They were the dragons who ventured to human lands the most and interacted with them, even falling in love, marrying, and having children with them. Silver Dragons look like creatures sculpted from the most polished of precious silver, their scales barely even distinguishable—especially in the bright sun. Moonlight captures well on a Silver Dragon's hide. Silver Dragons reach about 200 feet in length. Silver Dragons live anywhere it's close to a human or elf settlement so that they can keep in contact with their 'lesser race' friends. Though there are the Copper and Bronze and Brass dragons, I will not be discussing them.

The third type of dragon is also shaped like the Metallics, dragons from Western culture, but these dragons follow closely to how Westerners perceived dragons to be—cruel, malicious, tricky, and just plain nasty. These are the Chromatic Dragons. There are five sub-races, Red, Green, Blue, Black, and White. The Colors of the Evil Rainbow, as some scholars refer to them. The Red Dragons are the largest and most powerful of the Chromatics, and the most violent when it comes to dragon kind. They are horrid creatures of fire with fiery breaths so hot they can melt spells cast from a wizard or sorcerer. A few can shape shift, though it is not innate like Gold Dragons and Silver Dragons. For most, taking on a form that is considered lesser than they are—is demeaning. Red Dragons have the smell of sulfur (a.k.a. brimstone) about them. Though there were legends that stated that these dragons started out good and became evil. Black Dragons are equally vicious, but also sneaky. They smell of rotten leaves and wood and love to hide themselves in darkness. Some can shape shift into human or demihumans form, but that is unlikely. Most of the Chromatic Dragons have been banished to another dimension at the end of the war as it was they who had a hand in causing it.

The second group of dragons some times referred to as the Younger Race or Young Dragons, or even rarely the Drakes, are the dragons that Jake Long, Haley Long, Lao Shi, Sun Park, and the Dragon Council belong to. They usually grow to about 12 feet in length and have short life spans similar to that of humans. They do live slightly longer than humans, some have even reached the ripe old age of 180 years. But compared to the Ancients, these dragons are but a spark in the dark. These dragons are the new guardians of the magical world and have been since the Ancients left. In the aftermath of the war, the Ancients created the Drakes from humans and set them to guard the magical world to keep another war from happening. At the same time, they banished those who caused it, five Chromatic Dragons—Zestos the Red, Shäzyx the Blue, Venoshous the Green, Ithfaedeus the Black, and Glaecialyx the White. And one Chromatic Dragon helped the Metallics banish these miscreants through the Gate—Pyrothraxus, older brother to Zestos, Dragon of the Four Winds.

Pyrothraxus was, so far noted in history, the only benevolent Red Dragon. He fell in love with the Silver Dragon Sayan'i, which is a taboo because usually Reds and Silvers were mortal enemies. It was this love that brought Pyrothraxus out of the darkness of evil. He became a likened brother to the Gold Dragon O'eterus—the Council Leader of the Metallic Dragons and aided him in creating the Younger Dragons (Drakes) at the end of the war. But as the Metallic Dragon Ancients decided to depart this world to their home in a plane far beyond mortal knowledge, Pyrothraxus was the one who chose not to go with them. Though he was welcomed as a brother among the Metallic Dragons, he knew that someone had to stay behind and guard the Gate—and he felt he just did not fit in well with his new found brethren.

To the Drakes, Pyrothraxus was like a father and they dubbed him the Crimson Dragon. To them, O'eterus was known as Galen Garath the Golden Bandit, and Sayan'i was known as the Shield Dragon.

The tales of the Crimson Dragon were not lost, though Pyrothraxus appeared to be when he disappeared to guard the Gate from intruders, or to make sure the prisoners did not break their prison. When the Ancients left, they took their powerful magic with them, but left behind enough to sustain the magical creatures of today.

A thousand years had passed and the Gate's seal had grown weakened with age. One Chromatic Dragon escaped—the Black Dragon named Ithfaedeus. Pyrothraxus awoke to try and stop Ithfaedeus, but found his own powers weakened as well—and Ithfaedeus quickly overtook him. The Black Dragon escaped and Pyrothraxus had to search for him. Finding that the world had changed and to keep himself secret from not only the human world, but the magical world as well, Pyrothraxus took on a human form—a 3-year old child and walked into the new world of the late 60s New York City. He had to deny the existence of magic and look like he was oblivious to it even if he saw it being performed in plain sight. It was hard, but Pyrothraxus managed, finding that being in a child's form allowed the world around him to teach him their ways instead of him finding out for himself in an adult form. Pyrothraxus was a master of the _polymorph_ spell and even adjusted it to make people think he was growing—becoming an adolescent, even going through human puberty—complete with cracking voice and pizza face-pimples. To hide his strange red eyes, Pyrothraxus wore glasses.

No one knew the truth about who he was, not his adoptive family, not his wife, nor his children. And that was the way he wanted to keep, that is until more nasties started to force their way out of the Gate. Now Pyrothraxus had no choice but to tell the resident American Dragon who he was and why he was here, causing an uproar through the magical world. And Jake Long never saw it coming, nor did he ever think that Pyrothraxus' disguise was someone he knew—even grew up with. After all Pyrothraxus was like a father…like—a father to him and the Younger Dragon Race.


	2. An Ancient Tale

**An Ancient Tale**

Jake ducked and dodged as the ice giant continued to toss wave after wave of ice bombs at him. The red scaled, young dragon barrel-rolled around swooping low for another shot. His head reared back and his jaws parted as a bout of flame leapt out. The ice giant growled again when it felt the heat from the dragon's breath. Jake's breath was unusually strong for such a young dragon, one of the strange abnormalities that he was grateful to have at this time. But the other abnormality was his unusual low tolerance to cold. Most dragons like him had a high tolerance to cold, but a low tolerance to heat—despite being fire breathers. He was not grateful for that.

"Fu!" he cried. "What do I do?"

"Hang on, kid!" Fu Dog cried, looking the information up in his book. "Man, I haven't seen an ice giant in nearly 500 years. Last I heard they were locked behind some sort of gate. I'm looking it up!"

Jake glanced back just as a snow ball hit him and knocked him out of the sky.

"Jake!" cried Fu. "Great, the kid just got snow plowed. Hang on, kid, I'm coming!"

The ice giant growled as its white eyes narrowed, seeing the 800-year old Shar Pei head towards the fallen dragon under the mound of snow.

"Uh-oh," Fu swallowed. "Eh, nice giant, good giant."

Just as the giant was about to advance on Fu, another sound bellowed through the air. Fu heard the sound of two enormous wings flapping and the wind began to pick up around him. Soon the air became superheated as if downtown Manhattan was put inside an oven. Fu glanced up as a whirling tornado of fire came spinning down Main Street. The ice giant let loose a wail of his own just as the column of fire gathered him up, incinerating him instantly. Then, the spire of fire disappeared into black smoke.

"Fu!" called Jake as he dug his way out of the mound of snow. "Fu—hey, where's the giant?"

"A big, spinning, vortex of fire just—came out of nowhere and—roasted the ice giant," Fu pointed at a mound of ash that was gathering on the sidewalk.

"Say what?" Jake's red eyes lit up when he saw the ash. "Wait, hold up…who _iced _the ice giant?"

"_I did," _replied a booming voice from above. Jake glanced up just as the largest dragon he had ever seen in his life landed on top of the ashes. The ashes began to disperse around the enormous dragon. The dragon extended its wings and flapped them once to dust the ashes away. The dragon was an incredible sight to see. It looked like it was around 200 feet in length. It stood on all fours; something that Jake had never seen any dragon do since he discovered his powers. Its body was covered in a pelt of bright, fiery red scales, scales that were similar in color to his. Black, tiger stripes ran the length of its neck and body, all the way down to its tail. The edges of the wings were frayed and looked like burnt paper, their red color fading off to a deep violet. Two massive, curled, bony, knobby horns adorned the dragon's head. The dragon had a neck frill that extended down to the tip of its tail, obviously used as a rudder of some sort for flying. The dragon's neck and belly was pale tan in color and armored like a tank, with overlapping armored scales. Jake could not help but to notice how this dragon's red color mirrored his own. The most striking feature about this dragon was its eyes. They glowed like two hot coals and they had no pupils—only two bright yellow points that indicated some form of pupil. The dragon's jaws were massive and Jake felt a knot in his throat that seemed to build up as he stared into the dragon's eyes.

"Yo, what's your—handle…dude?" Jake swallowed just as he noticed the dragon's eyes narrowed at his question.

"Jake," began Fu Dog. "That's the Crimson Dragon!"

"_He is right," _the Crimson Dragon replied. _"I am Pyrothraxus, the Crimson Dragon. I gather you have never seen anything like me before, have you, American Dragon?"_

"You know who I am?" Jake asked.

"_I've been monitoring you," _Pyrothraxus replied.

Jake could not help but to notice just as Pyrothraxus came closer—a chink in the dragon's hide. A part of the Crimson Dragon looked to be shedding similar to how Jake and his grandfather molted. Fu gathered it was probably why the Great Red Wyrm decided to use one of his most powerful attacks to get rid of the ice giant instead of going through a long and drawn out battle. It was no time for any type of dragon to battle while molting.

"You have?" Jake asked. "Why?"

"_I have my reasons," _he replied. _"Fear not, I mean you no harm. I am a protector like you, only I have something more at stake. This ice giant escaped from the Gate to the Nine Hells—the gate I guard. I pray no more escape as well."_

Jake had the eeriest feeling he knew this dragon from somewhere. The voice especially creeped him out. He knew that voice, but how the dragon used that familiar voice made it difficult for Jake to put his finger on it. But he knew that voice and that look. The look the Red Dragon gave him was almost parental in nature. He noticed something else too. Around one of the dragon's fingers was a generic looking wedding band. His father has one too, but it was generic looking, no features on it or anything like that. Anyone could have one. Pyrothraxus extended his wings and launched back into the air.

"_Farewell, American Dragon," _the Crimson Dragon called as he arched his way to the sky. _"We may meet again."_

"Oh, man," Fu swallowed. "Come on, Jake, let's just get the hell outta here. Your grandpa needs to know about this."

Jake gathered Fu Dog and flew away.

"You saw a what?!" Lao Shi bellowed, spitting his tea out.

"An Ancient Dragon," replied Fu.

"I don't know about ancient, but this guy definitely holds the enormous bit well," said Jake. He had already reverted back to his human form when he got inside. "He was like: 'Wuzzup, I'm Pyrothraxus, the Crimson Dragon.' And I was like: 'Never heard of you, yo…'"

"Jake!" cried Lao Shi. "That was Pyrothraxus? Aiya, aiya! Gou shi tama de hun dan! Aiya! Huai-le!"

"Easy, G-man," Jake began. "Settle down."

"Wo men wan-le!" Lao Shi continued.

"What's wrong?" Jake asked.

"Jake," began Lao Shi as he tried to calm himself down. "You have met Pyrothraxus, the Crimson Dragon."

"Duh, that's what he told me."

"Pyrothraxus," began Lao Shi, holding his hand up to silence his pupil. "Is a Great Wyrm Red Dragon. There haven't been Great Wyrms in a thousand years. They all have disappeared. Great Wyrms are the elders of the Ancient Dragon race. The Ancient Dragons were the guardians of this world before us. In fact, they gave us the powers we have now, so the legend says. They gifted us with dragon magic so that we may take their place as guardians. And they left this world. But legend has it that one stayed behind, and that one is Pyrothraxus. The Crimson Dragon is the most powerful of the Red Dragons, a sub-race of the Chromatic Dragons. The Ancients are divided into two races, Chromatic and Metallic. The most powerful of the Metallics are Gold Dragons, and the most powerful of the Chromatics are Red Dragons. These dragons grow to enormous size, some growing as long as 300 feet and as tall as 45 feet to the shoulder. They stand on four legs and have the bodies of panthers, the necks of swans, the wings of bats, and the tails of serpents. They are what mortal humans have epitome what the dragon is supposed to look like—gigantic, fearsome, and so powerful that they could destroy the world. Which almost happened when the two races warred a thousand years ago. Which is why they left, feeling that their powers were too strong for this world. The left for another, but they did not leave this world without protectors. And that is why we are what we are."

"But Pyrothraxus stayed behind, why?" Jake asked.

"To guard the Gate to the Nine Hells," said Fu Dog as he pulled out a book on it. "When that war happened, some did not want to stop their bickering, so, the combined powers of five Metallic Dragons and Pyrothraxus over came them and tossed them through the gate. Someone had to stay behind and guard it to make sure no one nasty got through, so they drew straws. Pyrothraxus got the short straw and he was left behind while all that remains of the Ancient Dragons left this world and him alone."

"That bites," Jake shook his head. "All alone, without his homies to keep him company. Man, I'd be big and grumpy if Trixie and Spud were to diss me and move on to some other world."

"He was chosen for that task," said Lao Shi. "And though he may not like it, he understands his duties. Like you must also understand."

"Right, I hear yah," Jake nodded, scratching his head. "Look, Grandpa, I need to tell you something. When I saw Pyrothraxus, he reminded me of someone. His voice sounded—familiar. As he talked, he sounded like he wanted to tell me something, but couldn't. Kinda like my mom is about telling our secret to my dad. And another thing. He's molting."

"He may not want to go into another encounter with anyone who has escaped the gate," said Lao Shi. "That is why he is here. The gate is obviously becoming too weak to hold its prisoners. Though Ancient Dragons, especially Great Wyrms, have scales as hard as armored cars, they a vulnerable when they are shedding, because the new scales are soft and tender. If he does return to fight a creature that has escaped, help him out as best as you can."

"Right," Jake nodded. He glanced down for a moment and noticed an image of a black dragon with a skull-like face and curled horns that grew forward instead of back, one of the ones who was imprisoned behind the gate. "Hey, that looks like the Dark Dragon, a little bit."

"That is Ithfaedeus," said Fu. "He's a really nasty Ancient Dragon. A Great Wyrm Black Dragon with the power over shadows and sounds. Pyrothraxus defeated him in combat personally and he was thrown through the gate to be trapped. Although, some others say that Ithfaedeus was tricked by Pyrothraxus and lured into a trap. This didn't go very well with Ithfaedeus. You see, Pyrothraxus and Ithfaedeus are fellow Chromatic Dragons, and to betray your own kind kinda hurts."

"There's another red dragon too," said Jake. "One like Pyrothraxus, only smaller."

"That's Zestos," Lao Shi said. "Pyrothraxus' younger brother. He has the powers over fire and earth, while Pyrothraxus has the power over fire and wind."

"Which is why we saw a flaming tornado," said Fu. "That can only be conjured by someone who has knowledge in the elemental spheres of fire and wind. But Zestos can create huge magma monsters and send them after you. He's nasty as well. And those two have a major sibling rivalry, if you know what I mean. Having your older brother imprison you behind a gate kinda beefs up the rivalry. That whole 'mommy loved you best' routine is between those two."

Jake sighed as he turned back to the window: "He told me he was keeping an eye on me. He was watching me. I have the strangest feeling that he's been doing that a lot, like ever since I started my training."

"Hmmm…why would an Ancient Dragon watch you?" Lao Shi asked.

"Maybe he's into my mad skills, you know what I'm sayin'?" Jake grinned as he started to _Moon Walk_ across the floor. "Pyro digs the Am-Drag, yo…he even said we might meet again."

"It is a possibility if your duties include fighting a creature that just escaped the gate," said Lao Shi. "But that's enough for tonight. I've kept you here long enough and my daughter and son-in-law must be worried about you. Return to your home and dwell on this for a while. We will discuss it again."

"Alright then," Jake waved. "Holla."

Pyrothraxus stared silently out into the skyline of the city. His fiery eyes focused deeply on one part, a small electronics shop. Why this shop was of a particular interest to him, no one could really tell. But he stared longingly at it. Someone who he cared deeply about was inside that shop, that someone he saw earlier. He saved this person—the one who called himself the American Dragon. Jake Long, that was his real name. To the Younger Race, Pyrothraxus was called the Crimson Dragon. There was something itching inside of him, a secret that now seemed unnecessary. He wanted to tell Jake everything at that moment. But he could not. He wanted to so badly.

Jake Long was at his grandfather's.

Lao Shi, the Chinese Dragon, a man who saw Pyrothraxus—well at least his human form—as a lesser being. It was because he was Lao Shi thought Pyrothraxus was human. Just human, with no added magical bells and whistles. Just human. Sometimes Pyrothraxus thought that he could show the old dragon up and perform some of his more powerful spells to prove that he was more than he seemed to be. But that was the Red Dragon inside of him talking. He used to listen to that Red Dragon before he met Sayan'i. Now, he listened to it much less than he did. Though when Lao Shi was concerned, Pyrothraxus wanted to listen to that little Red Dragon in his head and be the arrogant snob he once was before he met the Shield Dragon.

His eyes turned and he roved his head towards another spot, a small townhouse. He smelled the scent of delicious pot-stickers and lo mien cooking, which put a smile on his face. The Red Dragon spread his wings wide and launched from his perch atop of a skyscraper. He let his nose guide him as he flew closer to the scent of a good hot meal—cooked by his wife, Susan Long.


	3. Family Lies

**Family Lies**

Jonathan Long growled a bit when he looked at himself in the mirror. It was his molting season and there was nothing he could do about it. His whole face looked like it was crackling away. He stood in the bathroom with naught but his boxers on, scratching away at his skin. But he could not help but to smile for a moment, at least he got a chance to meet his own son in his true form. He was, after all, Pyrothraxus, the Crimson Dragon. Jonathan Long was indeed a dragon, an Ancient Dragon of the Chromatic Red variety. His family never knew his secret, but they had their own secret to hide from him—though it did not work. He knew about their true nature, that they were dragons of the Younger Race. His wife Susan was born of the Chinese Dragon Lung Lao Shi. Though the dragon powers skipped her, living her in human form, she was still a dragon. Her mother was a dragon, her father was a dragon, but the powers skipped her and went to her children Jake and Haley. He knew that they were dragons, though they did their best to hide it from him. They did their best to hide everything magical from him. He knew that his sister was going out with a troll, his sister by adoption. Jonathan Long, a.k.a. Pyrothraxus, over 40 years ago shifted into a human form of a three year-old and was adopted into the Long family. And he spent these years in human form, never even once going into his dragon form—that is until his son became the American Dragon. The only way to catch up to him was to shift into his own dragon form and follow him using an invisibility spell.

It was amusing at first, amusing to anyone other than him of course, seeing Pyrothraxus trying to teach himself how to fly, because he had not exercised that ability for 4 decades. The first night out when Jake started taking his role as the American Dragon, Jonathan long in his true form as the Crimson Dragon, was struggling trying to keep himself aloft. He actually almost crashed when he landed in Central Park. So, knowing that he had to keep up with his son, he had to re-teach himself how to fly. He would tell his family he had an emergency at work and had to go in, but in reality, he took off for the country and began his own flying lessons while Jake learned how to fly from Lao Shi. And for the first few weeks, Pyrothraxus mostly took off from high places, starting with a glide first instead of taking off from the ground. Soon, it all came back to him.

And he smiled. He had a feeling his son recognized him. He would be asking questions, but the problem was he would be asking Lao Shi questions.

_Why can't he just ask me questions?_ Jonathan sighed as he picked at his shedding skin. He swiftly reverted into a human-sized version of his dragon form and grabbed a pair of tweezers from the medicine cabinet. _"Damned skin. Why do I have to shed now?"_

"Hey, daddy?" came a little voice from beyond the door. "Jake's late again. You gonna scold him like you did the last time?"

Pyrothraxus dropped the tweezers, tearing a bit of his scales off as he did so: _"Ow!"_

He snorted, black smoke coming out in columns from his nostrils.

"_No, honey," _he replied. _"I'm not gonna scold him. Unless he gives me an adequate excuse. And I wanna know the real reason why he's always out late. I want him to tell me. Is he on drugs or something? You can tell me, Haley. Is he out there dealing drugs?"_

Of course he knew the real truth, but he also knew that Haley would not answer his question. She knew that her brother was on some important dragon mission, but her father was not allowed to know. What she did not know was that her father—being a dragon himself—had already followed him earlier. As they kept the secret of their draconic heritage from Jonathan, so did he keep his dragon secret from them. Not even Susan knew he was a dragon. He would have never known about Susan being a dragon until he saw Aunt Mai sneezing in the corner. And as Aunt Mai sneezed, she was spouting flames, her head turning into a dragon. This happened at their wedding reception on their wedding night. But to keep his secret, he could not tell her that he knew she was related to dragons. And so, this whole family built their relationship on a lie. Jonathan sighed and held his head in his claws. The lying must stop. He wanted to talk to his son tonight, alright.

"No, he's not doing drugs, dad," Haley replied.

"_Then, why is he out all night every night?" _Pyrothraxus asked, his tail slamming against the door as he tried to get the loose layer of scales off of him. Haley jumped back from the door when she saw it shake and heard the loud thump.

"Are you alright, dad?" she asked.

"_I'm fine!" _Pyrothraxus replied, snorting some more smoke from his nostrils. He pulled his boxers back and scratched his rump. _"Answer my question!"_

"I don't know where he is," said Haley. "And I don't know why. Don't get angry at me."

"_I'm a worried parent, pumpkin!" _the Red Dragon called. _"I worry where you all are at most of the time. Even you go out now—alone on the streets. I wish you both would tell me. I'm tired of this, Haley. I know you two are hiding something from me, and it worries me. We're supposed to be a family—we're supposed to trust each other."_

That plucked a heartstring inside Haley. Her father was right, they were supposed to be a family and trust each other. She could feel her eyes welling up with tears when she heard her father say that. She wanted to tell him that she was a dragon, that Jake was a dragon and that was why they were out a lot at night. They had dragon duties to take care of—magical creatures to protect. But she could not. She was forbidden.

"_Haley…" _Pyrothraxus began softly, picking up her emotions through his own keen draconic senses. _"I'm sorry I yelled. I just get worried sometimes. Look, can you do me a favor and get some of that all purpose cream that Spud gave Jake one time for his skin problems?"_

"Why?"

"_I have a rash," _Pyrothraxus replied. _"Just go get it for me."_

Haley dried her eyes and nodded, walking down the hall to another cabinet where Jake kept the cream. She returned again and knocked.

"I got it," she said. The door opened slightly and she saw a claw—a dragon's claw—reach out and grab the jar. Haley's eyes opened wide when she saw that claw as it withdrew with the jaw in its palm.

"_Thanks, honey," _said her father. After ten minutes of grunting, Jonathan Long emerged out of the bathroom, in human form and with his new skin. "Ah, that felt much better."

"You okay, dad?" Haley asked.

"I'm fine, sugar," Jonathan said as he rubbed her crown. "Just let me get some clothes on and I'll be ready to talk to Jake."

"Honey!" called Susan as she looked up from under the hall balcony. "What was that noise?"

"I had a rash, dear," Jonathan replied. "It was awful, but the cream helped…"

Haley watched her father as he disappeared behind the door to his bedroom. She glanced down and saw the dragon skin lying on the floor. It was not Jake's dragon skin—he already shed his a week ago and gave it to Rose to give to the Huntsmaster as a pelt and a decoy. She picked it up and noticed its shape. No, that dragon skin was not Jake's…it was…her father's.

"Daddy is a dragon…" she began. "Too? Wait…daddy is a dragon?! Daddy is a…then…that means we can…tell him about us being dragons."

The door cracked open and Jonathan peeked through at his daughter as she examined the skin. This was exactly what he wanted. He purposely left the skin there so that he could bring her to tell him.

"Mom, dad, I'm home!" Jake called as he opened the front door below the balcony. Haley glanced around and shifted into her dragon form. She exhaled some fire and burned the skin up. Jonathan slammed his head against the door. That was not what he wanted. He did not want his daughter to burn the evidence.

"No!" he cried and opened the door. Haley's eyes were wide when he came out and she was still in her dragon form. Jonathan glanced around and motioned for her to come to him. "Come here. I'm not mad. I know what you guys really do. Come here."

"Um…"

"Hey, anyone home?" Jake asked.

"Don't come up yet, son," Jonathan called. "But I do need to talk to you. I'll talk to you tomorrow about coming home late. Go help your mother clean up—since we had to eat dinner without you. You're in trouble, son!"

"Aw man…" Jake sighed as he entered the kitchen.

"Haley, come here," Jonathan whispered. Haley nodded and fluttered into the room. He closed the door behind her and shifted back into his dragon form.

"You are a dragon," Haley breathed. "Wait, you're a dragon too? Daddy…"

"_Shhh…"_ Pyrothraxus hissed, putting a finger to his lips. _"Don't tell anyone. Not yet."_

"If you're really a dragon," Haley began as she shifted back into her human form. "Why didn't you tell us?"

"_Why didn't you tell me?" _he asked. _"Look, I know you two go out because you have duties as dragons in this city. I've been following you both."_

"You been keeping an eye on us, dad?"

"_Well, I get worried," _Pyrothraxus said as he shifted back into Jonathan Long. "Haley, there's a lot of things I need to explain, but I want to do that when we're all—as a family—together. I'm tired of all the lies. It's like we don't know each other anymore. I've known that you guys were dragons, but I never said anything because I had to keep my secret as well."

"But you're a dragon like us," Haley began. "What's to keep then? We all a family of dragons."

"No, not a dragon like you," said Jonathan. "I'm of a completely different breed. Has Sun Park ever told you about the Ancient Dragons?"

"A little," she said. "Mostly about where our powers came from. She said the Ancients chose some humans and turned them into dragons to take up their job of protecting the magical world while the Ancients were gone."

"I'm an Ancient Dragon," said Jonathan. "A part of the Chromatic race. The 'bad guys'. But I'm not bad. I was one of the ones who gave those humans their powers. I and O'eterus the Gold. I'm Pyrothraxus."

"I've heard about you!" Haley began in a hushed toned. "You're the one who locked all the bad monsters up in that gate."

"And when the other Ancients left I was left here to guard it," said Jonathan. "It's one of the reasons why Sun Park noticed that yours and your brother's flames and powers are a bit more powerful than theirs. You get that from your old man."

"Wow…" Haley breathed. "But if you know about me and Jake, why scold us? We're just doing what you and O'eterus told us to do when you gave our ancestors their powers."

Jonathan chuckled: "Because, it's an act. You guys aren't supposed to know about me. It's because there's really nasty people out there who want to get a hold of me and use me to open the gate. I can't mingle with anything magical, that's why I pretend not to notice anything magical and pretend that I'm human—even to other magical creatures. Even to you. I knew the smell when I smelled your grandfather. I had a feeling he was a dragon—but my suspicions were confirmed when I saw Aunt Mai sneezing in the corner. She was sneezing fire. So, I pretended not to notice and I allowed you guys to try and hide it. You're not doing a good job. I still see it, but I pretend to make your attempts at hiding everything magical from me work. Just like Jake's run in with the Jersey Devil. I knew it was a Jersey Devil, but I pretended not to notice a winged stag—so I called it a bear."

"I remember Jake telling me that," Haley giggled. "But why leave your skin in the bathroom if we're not to know about you being a dragon?"

"I'm sick of the lies," said Jonathan. "Besides, right now, it no longer matters if you know or not. The worst has already happened."

"What's that?" she asked.

"The Dark Dragon is loose," he replied in a grim tone. "He was one of the ones who were thrown through the gate."

"Jake and Grandpa are the only ones who have faced the Dark Dragon and lived," said Haley.

"And the Dark Dragon is right," said Jonathan said. "They were lucky to have survived. Now, enough of this. Let's go down and I'll scold Jake. Don't tell him. I want to tell him, okay?"

"Okay," she nodded. Jonathan and Haley walked down the stares and saw Jake helping his mother Susan put up the dishes.

"I want to know where you've been again, Jake," Jonathan began.

"No where," Jake shrugged.

"Now, don't lie," he said. "Are you dealing drugs?"

"What?" Jake's head snapped back. "No! Dad! What made you think that?"

"You're not telling me everything, you keep going out, you lie," said Jonathan.

"Honey," Susan began. "He's been at his grandfather's the whole time. If you don't believe him, call my father."

"And why do you believe him?" Jonathan asked, crossing his arms and cocking an eyebrow.

"Well…I…" she began.

"Does it start with a 'd' and end with an 'n'?" Jonathan asked. Susan's color suddenly drained from her face.

"I'll leave you to think on that," said Jonathan. "But I have to go."

"And where are you going?" Susan asked. "You've been going out a lot at night too."

"I—have drugs to deal," he replied cheerfully. Then, he glanced down at his son with a spiteful look in his two ruby-colored eyes. Jake just shrank back when he saw those two eyes. They looked like the two eyes of that dragon he met earlier—the Crimson Dragon. "At least I'm truthful. Actually, I have work to do at the office. The boss called again. Another late night. I'll see you in the morning."

"Um, honey," began Susan. "Remember, we have to go to Florida tomorrow. You have to drive my father."

"Because he's afraid of flying, right?" Jonathan asked.

"Yes," said Susan. "Jake, Haley, and I will fly."

"Lao Shi doesn't like me," Jonathan growled. "He never did since we married."

"I know, sweetie," Susan threw her arms around her husband. She kissed him softly on the lips. "Just do this for me, okay?"

"Okay, dear," Jonathan replied. "Well, I guess I won't see you tomorrow, Jake. But when we get back from Florida, you and I will have a talk."

"Right…" Jake sighed. Haley just giggled.

"Jake's in trouble," she teased.

"Shut up."

"Jake, be nice to your sister," Jonathan warned.

"But she started it!" Jake protested defensively. "Oh…never mind."

"Goodbye," said Jonathan as he walked out the door. Haley glanced up at the ceiling when she heard the sounds of enormous wings flapping away. She knew what that meant and smiled. Then, she looked at Jake, who was staring at her with an inquisitive glance. Then, she turned around and stuck her tongue out at him.

"I know something that you don't know and I'm not telling!" she chanted as she skipped back up the stairs to her room.

Jake rolled his eyes and grumbled to himself. Then, he glanced back up at his mother: "Why is Dad so hard on me?"

"Your father loves you," she replied. "He loves everyone in this family, but this is what we get for hiding something from a family member. Jake, sit down for a moment."

"Sure," he said as he walked into the living room and sat down on the couch. Susan sat with him.

"Jake, I've been thinking about this…for a long time," she began. "And I think it's time to tell your father the truth."

"You've been working on that since 1992," Jake said.

"I know," Susan nodded. "But I think we need to tell him now."

"Grandpa isn't going to like that," said Jake. "He'll be like 'you must not tell any mortal—non-magical human about us, or the consequences will be dire' and act all old and stuff."

"I think the consequences of this family being torn apart because of three of its members lying to one would be worse," she sighed. "I can't keep the secret easily—in fact—it was easier for me when I didn't have children who could turn into dragons."

Jake's eyes became downcast.

"Listen, Jake," began Susan. "I'm tired of lying to your father. And I'm tired of us lying to him. We're not being good family members by doing that."

"I guess you're right," Jake sighed. "But what will happen when we tell him? Will he leave us?"

"We'll see when it happens, won't we?" Susan asked.

"Yeah," he said. "I guess we will."

Susan gazed into those red eyes of her son's. Haley had red eyes as well, just like Jonathan. They sparkled like ruby jewels. It was one of the things that she found attractive in Jonathan. She always wondered why her son and daughter had eyes like their father rather than brown eyes like hers. Red eyes were very uncommon among even humans.

Above on the balcony Haley was listening. She smiled slightly, knowing that the truth will be told. Even she wanted to tell her father. And even she was afraid that her father would leave her if he found out that she was a dragon. But all those worries were gone when her father told her about himself. He was Pyrothraxus, one of the Ancients that gave her ancestors their powers. Of course he would not leave. Haley giggled in delight and ran to her room. She had a warm feeling about what will happen, though she would not know how her mother would take it. Her father is accepting of his family being dragons—because he was a dragon himself—but they never knew about him being a dragon. Susan might leave him instead. The scenario that Susan was afraid of could happen, only the opposite. And that disturbed Haley. So, she curled up on her bed and held tightly to her covers, thinking about the scene that would happen. She hoped that her mother would be as forgiving of her father's secrets just as her father is forgiving for her mother's secrets.


	4. Southern Attacks

**Southern Attacks**

"Yankee Doodle went to town, just to ride a pony," began Jonathan as he drove down the road towards Aunt Cathy's house. They were about to pull up into the driveway. Lao Shi could not stand one more hour of his son-in-law's singing. He wanted to turn into his dragon form right now and fly out the window.

"Come on, Lao Shi," Jonathan smiled, glancing down at the short, Asian man. "Sing with me."

"Bai-tuo, an-jing yi-dian!" Lao Shi barked at him.

"Zhen mei nai-xing de Fo-zu," Jonathan chuckled back.

"What did you just call me?!" Lao Shi roared at him. "And since when did you know Chinese?"

"So, I've been taking a class lately," said Jonathan. "So next time you insult me in Chinese, I can retort back."

"You think you're so smart, don't you?" Lao Shi asked.

"Ni juede wo hen ben ma?" Jonathan smiled back.

"Okay, I get the point," Lao Shi sighed. "Shen jing bing…"

"I heard that," Jonathan said. He turned the car around and pulled into the drive way. Lao Shi glanced around, sensing something foul in the air. He did not like what he sensed. Jonathan and his father-in-law walked into the house.

There was no one inside the house. The dinner table was empty, even the kiddie table was empty. And this began to worry Lao Shi. He glanced back at Jonathan who was calling everyone, acting like the whole family was playing a game of hide and seek.

"Jonathan!" Lao Shi cried. "Look, just have a seat and start eating, I'll go look outside."

"Sure," Jonathan shrugged. "But I'd hate to start while they're not here. This lo mien looks half eaten." He dipped his chopsticks into the bowl and tasted a noodle. "And cold. Where do you suppose they are?"

"Never mind," Lao Shi snapped. "Just sit down."

The small, elderly, Chinese man pulled a chair out for his son-in-law to sit down. He reached into a pocket of his blue robes and pulled out a leather bag. He opened it up and sprinkled a bit of dust onto the seat of the chair just before Jonathan sat down. It was hard to hide the family secret from his son-in-law, but he had to do it. Jonathan Long could not know that he married into a family of dragons. Jonathan sat down and straightened out his crimson red tie. Of course, he sensed something was amiss as well, though he had to keep his own cover and pretend like he did not suspect a thing.

"I'll go look outside to see if they are out there," said Lao Shi. "Just wait here, son-in-law."

"Okie-dokie," Jonathan cheerfully replied as he watched the blue-robed senior walk outside the screen door. He reached in with his chopsticks and placed some noodles into his plate. "Mmm, I bet this is good—even if it is cold." He glanced around for a moment to make sure no one saw him. And then, he took in a deep breath and exhaled out a small cone of fire, warming the noodles up. Jonathan proceeded to eat them. "Ah, much better."

He started eating, but something just did not seem right. And then, that was when he heard the scream. It was Jake.

"Jake?" Jonathan asked. "Jake?"

He tried to push off of his chair, but he found that he was stuck to it.

"Oh…Lao Shi!" he growled. "Uh…very funny, Grandpa, you glued me to my chair—again."

He heard another cry and it sounded like Susan, his wife.

"Sue?" he asked. His ears picked up another cry and it was Haley. "Oh-no. Haley, hang on, sweetie, I'm coming! Daddy's coming!"

He grunted just as he tore himself away from the chair. He heard something rip and he glanced down, noticing that the seat of his pants were still attached to it. His red spotted boxers were showing at the back. Jonathan shook his head as he heard his family cry out again and he rushed out the door.

"Jake!" he cried. "Haley, Susan, Lao Shi!"

He glanced up, at the angry clouds above him. The wind picked up around him and he saw dragons flying about, trying their best to fight an enormous black dragon with a purple belly and a purple mane on its head. The black dragon was twice their size, standing around 15 feet tall. Though, Jonathan knew the form that dragon was in was only a cover-up. The black dragon's true form was much larger and much more dangerous. His eyes narrowed as he spied something red in the black dragon's claw. It was Jake in his dragon form!

"Jake!" he gasped.

"J—Jonathan!" cried the familiar voice of Lao Shi. Jonathan glanced up, seeing a long, blue, sinuous, eastern-looking dragon whipping about like a ribbon in the air. "D—don't pay any attention to this…it's a hologram."

"Funny hologram…" Jonathan replied, rolling his eyes. He knew the truth all along. They just did not know about his secret.

"Jonathan!" cried Susan as she came running up to him. "Look, just go back inside. Okay?"

Jonathan shook his head as he grabbed her arms: "I love you, Sue. I just want you to know that I've been lying about something to you since our wedding night. Now, my son is in trouble and he needs me."

He let go of her and turned away, glancing back at the black dragon. To the young magical world, this dragon was known as the Dark Dragon, but to Jonathan—he was Ithfaedeus. The Dark Dragon gripped Jake tighter and Jonathan heard his son cry out again. His own keen ears picked up the sound of bones breaking. Jake's wings were being broken.

"Hey!" Jonathan cried. "You! Let my son go!"

"Jonathan!" Susan cried. "Please, don't go near him."

"Uh—yeah, Mr. Long," called another voice. Jonathan glanced down to see a Shar Pei looking up at him. A soon as he glanced down, the dog started barking. He shook his head again. He knew an enchanted dog when he heard one.

"Don't worry about me, Fu," Jonathan replied. "I can handle the Dark Dragon."

"Wait—wha…" Fu gasped. "How the hell did he know about the—and me…and he's not freaking out."

"Jonathan…" Susan began. "You're—not…you're not…you knew all this time?"

"That's a long story," said Jonathan.

The Dark Dragon glanced down upon him and grinned: "Well, well, well, Pyrothraxus. It's been ages."

"Apparently it hasn't been long enough, Ithfaedeus," Jonathan called above the howling wind. He took his glasses off. "You're still up to your old tricks. I thought my son finally was rid of you. Unfortunately, he was not strong enough to handle you—so he had to get some help from his friends. I was watching the whole time. Even with my blood inside of him, he was not strong enough. But he will be with the proper tutelage."

"Yes, indeed," Ithfaedeus agreed.

"Not yours, you imbecile!" Jonathan cried, his attitude changed from the slightly happy, almost absent minded man that he often put on to an almost harsh being with fire in his eyes. "Mine! And none of that Cougar Scout nonsense either. I intend to really teach him how to handle a throwback like yourself."

"D—dad…" Jake blinked for a moment when he heard his father's words. What did he mean by 'properly teaching him'—or about the blood inside of him?

"You wish to come after the boy, then you'll have to go through me in order to do so," Ithfaedeus growled, gripping Jake tighter.

"Dad!" Jake cried. "Gramps…somebody…"

"Let him go, it's me you want!" Jonathan cried. "You want the key. You want me to open the gate! You want to free our brethren! The other Chromatics. Shäzyx the Blue, Venoshus the Green, and Glaecialyx the White. And even—Zestos my brother."

Lao Shi's eyes widened as he landed. He knew those names, but he was even more shocked that Jonathan also knew them. But the thing that nearly knocked him out was the fact that Jonathan called Zestos his brother. The Chinese Dragon glanced down at his daughter. She bit her lip, holding herself tightly as she shivered. This whole scene made no sense to her. He knelt down to her and placed his arms around her, leaning his snout to her, and brushing his cheek against hers. It was like when she was a child and she was afraid of the dark. He would always come running in when she was frightened, transforming into his dragon form to chase whatever shadows she was afraid of. She was safe in his arms.

"Dad, I don't think that's my husband," Susan began with a sob. "I really don't."

"He is your husband," said Lao Shi. "But I don't think he's been very truthful with us."

"Can you blame him?" she asked. "We haven't been truthful with him either. Dad, I'm really scared right now."

Jonathan glanced back and sighed when he sensed his wife's distress.

"You never told them, did you?" the Dark Dragon said with a chuckle. "You didn't even tell your own son. Why don't you tell them now before we battle, Pyrothraxus?"

Jonathan glanced back at Lao Shi and Susan. Then, he glanced up at Jake.

"I'm—I'm not what you think I am," Jonathan began. "I'm not human, for one."

"What?" Susan asked. She glanced over, seeing Haley grip her dress.

"Go ahead, dad, tell them," said Haley. "Tell them the truth."

"Wait…what?" Jake asked.

"Jake," began Jonathan. "You have a lot more inside of you than your mother and your grandfather's draconic lineage. You also have mine as well. But my side is from a more ancient race. My real name is Pyrothraxus the Red, but you know me as the Crimson Dragon. I am 5 thousand years old and I am the guardian of a gateway to a prison where the Dark Dragon and others like him came from."

Jake's eyes became downcast when he heard this. His father was that gigantic red dragon that saved him from that ice giant that one night.

"I've been following you ever since you found out about your dragon powers," Jonathan continued. "I just wanted to make sure my son was alright. I—even followed you to the Dragon World Summit. You never saw me because I had an invisibility spell on myself. But I was there. I heard everything, even what they punished you for. I'm sorry."

"You—were there?" Jake asked. "You—you've been hiding this all this time?"

"Son, you and your mother and your grandfather have been trying to hide your secret from me for 15 years," said Jonathan.

"But you've always known!" Jake called.

"Why didn't you tell me you knew I was a dragon, Jon?" Susan cried. "I lived in that household, fearing that you wouldn't accept us, that you would divorce me for lying to you—or for being married to a monster."

"Because I had a legitimate reason to hide who I was," Jonathan replied. "If you knew about my secret, then others would know—and those certain others would come looking for the rest of my Chromatic family line."

"You're a Chromatic Dragon?" Susan asked.

"Why do you think our son turned out red?" Jonathan asked. "He even had red eyes like mine. So did Haley. Why do you think he had them? Because I am a Chromatic Red Dragon."

"So, now you know," Ithfaedeus chuckled darkly when he saw Jake's head lower in distraught. The Dark Dragon backed away, chuckling. Jonathan glanced up, seeing him back away for a moment.

"What do you think you're doing with my son?" he asked.

"Getting ahead start," the Dark Dragon grinned. Jonathan let loose a bellowing roar and he exploded out into his dragon form. Instead of a 5-foot 9 human standing on the beach sand, there was a 200-foot long Red Dragon with smoking jaws.

"J—Jonathan…" Susan breathed.

"Daddy?" Haley asked.

"Oh—I am never upsetting that guy ever again," Lao Shi swallowed.

"Oh man, he makes you guys look like tiny lizards," Fu Dog chuckled smartly. Lao Shi turned his head, giving the 800-year old, wrinkled mutt a nasty look.

"D—dad?" Jake blinked. He just could not believe that he just saw his own father turn into practically the largest dragon he had ever seen. Flames flickered out and licked about the Red Dragon's jaws and nostrils. Jake's eyes blinked again as he scanned the dragon's body. Those enormous wings were spread slightly, testing the wind. He could tell that the muscles in the hind legs were coiling up, ready to either pounce or leap into the air. He really was that dragon who killed the ice giant nearly two days ago. Pyrothraxus was at least almost 5 times larger than the Dark Dragon. The Dark Dragon just chuckled again. Then, he made his metamorphosis. His body became larger. The horns on his head grew out and curled around towards the front like the horns of a steer. His face became more gruesome. It became skeletal, his teeth growing out around his lips, making his mouth look like they have no lips—giving his face a perpetual smile. His body became hunched over, and he landed on all fours like Pyrothraxus. The purple mane on his head disappeared, replaced by a neck frill. The scales around his body became like harden armor—more tough than any dragon this days have seen. Though he knew that his hide's own armor would be surpassed by Pyrothraxus in a way. The only thing that Jake Long could do was stare back with his eyes wide and his jaw slacked. The Dark Dragon now looked like that Black Dragon from Fu's book!

"_Ithfaedeus," _Pyrothraxus growled, licking his lips with a forked tongue.

"_Pyrothraxus…" _the Dark Dragon chuckled.

Jake shook his head again, his eyes darting back and forth from the Red Dragon that was his father to the Black Dragon that was the Dark Dragon. Ithfaedeus, Pyrothraxus—those were the Ancients his grandfather told him about. But his mind could not get over what he now discovered. His father, Jonathan Long—the same father who he tried to hide his own draconic secret from—was a dragon himself. And not just any dragon, he was Pyrothraxus the Guardian of the Gate to the Nine Hells. And right there Jake felt faintish. His father knew all along about dragons, about magical creatures because he was one. Now, for Jake, nothing made sense.

"Oy vey…" Jake wagged his head, feeling that it was going to explode on him.

"_Easy, Jake," _Pyrothraxus began as he moved slightly closer. _"Just relax and take a deep breath."_

"_Do I smell the scent of lilacs coming off your hide, Crimson Dragon?" _Ithfaedeus asked, his nose twitching. _"Trying to hide the horrid stench of brimstone from your family?"_

"_It's the cologne I wear," _the Red Dragon replied. _"And yes, I do wear it to hide my smell. No one likes the smell of a Red Dragon. Brimstone isn't exactly pleasing to anyone else except for other Reds. My wife, when we were dating, complained about smelling rotten eggs when she was around me. I have been making it a dutiful chore to please her and get rid of the smell."_

"_To keep your secret?" _

"_No, to please the one I loved," _Pyrothraxus replied. _"I love her with my heart. I love my son and my daughter with my heart as well. And you will not harm either of them."_

Susan felt her eyes began to well up with tears when she heard him say that. She remembered when she first met him and smelled him. Anyone could smell him. He stunk like rotten eggs. It was the smell of sulfur and brimstone—the smell of a Red Dragon. And to make her happy, he bathed to get rid of the smell. She recalled that even today, Jonathan constantly bathed when he got home from work, spraying himself with the scent of lilacs and rose water. It was the only thing he could do to get rid of the smell.

"_When I am done with all of you, you will tell me how to open the gate, dear brother," _the Dark Dragon growled again as a bit of spittle dripped from his jaws. Jake watched as the saliva splashed onto the sand and he heard the sound of hissing coming from it. He saw the steam rising from the puddle and noticed bubbling. His spit was acidic. Ithfaedeus turned his head slightly, feeling the sensation of bile coming up into his throat. He wanted to shoot his acid right into Pyrothraxus' eyes.

"Wait, the Dark Dragon is my uncle?" Jake asked his father. Pyrothraxus turned his head to the American Dragon and chuckled, flames continuing to flicker about his nostrils as he laughed.

"_Don't be foolish," _he replied. _"Brother is a word we often used to refer to each other, but the Dark Dragon and I are not related. At one time we Chromatics were a close-nit group. We relied on each other."_

"_But you had to go and break that!" _Ithfaedeus reared his head back and acid spouted out from his jaws.

"Dad!" Jake cried as he saw the acid spray towards his father. The Crimson Dragon dodged the attack, ducking and rolling over just as the acid hit the ground where he once stood.

"Honey!" Susan cried just as Ithfaedeus took this opportunity and launched himself into the air.

"Dad!" Jake cried. "Help!"

"_Jake!" _Pyrothraxus cried. _"Ithfaedeus, come back with my son! Jacob!"_

The Great Red Wyrm launched himself into the air, flapping his wings frantically to gain speed and altitude. Ithfaedeus was lighter and smaller than he was—still, which gave the Black Dragon an advantage over speed. Lao Shi studied from the ground as the two dragons made their way higher into the sky. Pyrothraxus' wings were broad and enormous, almost twice his length—but they were made for long flights and lengthy periods of gliding, not quick bursts like the wings of Ithfaedeus. The two dragons clashed together, clawing and biting each other. This was a typical draconic battle. Rarely did they use their breath weapons. But Ithfaedeus was at a disadvantage, he still had one claw occupied with holding Jake. Pyrothraxus was occupied as well, trying to make sure his blows did not harm Jake. The other, smaller dragons landed near Lao Shi and returned to their human forms. Lao Shi also returned to his human form and watched the battle closely. The sky was in a torrent display of shifting clouds and flashes of lightning as the two ancient Chromatic Dragons fought. They broke away and Ithfaedeus sprayed his acid towards Pyrothraxus. But the Red Dragon dodged the attack again. Only a sprinkle of acid pelted the membrane of his right wing as he dodged, adding to the already tattered edge. Pyrothraxus bellowed in pain as he felt the acid burn his wing and he floundered, dropping in altitude.

"Dad!" Jake cried. "No!"

Ithfaedeus growled when he heard the American Dragon and drew him near.

"_You're becoming annoying, American Dragon," _he growled. _"It's time to loose you."_

His claw loosened and Jake fell threw. He could not even flap his wings, they were still broken from the squeezing earlier. He plummeted towards the ground, flipping about in the wind.

"Dad!" he cried.

"_Jacob!" _Pyrothraxus cried as he dove towards his falling son. Jake reverted back into his human form just as his father's claw reached out to catch him. Lao Shi transformed into his dragon form and leapt into the air. Pyrothraxus caught Jake in the palm of his claw and he held tightly. Jake was still injured and he grunted in pain when he felt his father's claw close around him. Lao Shi came up around Pyrothraxus.

"I'll take him," he said. "Just handle the Dark Dragon!"

"_Be careful with him…" _Pyrothraxus said, his voice trying to withhold a desperate sob. Lao Shi turned around just as he took Jake into his arms, giving the Red Dragon a shocked look. That voice was all too much Jonathan-esque. All those stories he heard about Pyrothraxus, in what he did long ago—going from an evil scoundrel to an arrogant keeper of a forbidden gate—now to a worried father.

"Don't worry, Jonathan," Lao Shi reassured his son-in-law. "He'll be safe. But since the American Dragon can't handle the Dark Dragon in his condition—it's up to you to do it."

The expression on Pyrothraxus' immense face brightened when he heard his father-in-law say those words to him. It was the first time Lao Shi had ever said anything to him that sounded like he was putting his faith in him—and not sounding like some insult for being not only an outsider to Susan's family, but being just annoying.

"_You mean that, Lao Shi?" _Pyrothraxus asked, grinning, his deep voice sounding a bit more like Jonathan again. _"I'm not some dope your daughter just married?"_

"The Crimson Dragon a dope?" Lao Shi asked. "Not after all the things I've heard about you. Now, get back up there."

"_Thanks, dad," _he said. _"I won't let you down."_

"Lao-tian-ye," Lao Shi sighed. "Liu kou-shui de biao-zi he hou-zi de ben er-zi! Now go up there and kick the ass of that gou cao de."

Pyrothraxus chuckled and nodded.

"And don't call me dad!" Lao Shi continued. Pyrothraxus turned and began to rise higher.

"Dad!" cried Jake. His whole body was in pain and it was difficult for him to even talk. Pyrothraxus turned around. "I'm—not mad at you for not telling me about your secret."

"_And I'm not mad at you for not telling me about your secret," _Pyrothraxus said. _"Okay, Jake? Get with your mother and stay down. After this—you, me, Haley, and your mother are going to have a talk about all of this. It's not going to be bad, but we need to talk."_

"So, that was you who was watching me all this time?" Jake asked. "In the shadows every time I went on a mission."

"_I wanted to make sure my son was safe," _he said. _"But you've been taking good care of yourself. You can't blame a father for worrying though."_

"Thanks, dad," Jake smiled.

"_I'll be back," _the Red Dragon whispered as he beat his wings, gaining altitude once more.

"_Did you say good bye to your dear son, Pyrothraxus?" _Ithfaedeus smirked as he saw Pyrothraxus meet him up in the clouds again.

"_Thric ner, porthoc wux faessi!" _he hissed, speaking in Draconic. They clashed again, claws raking, tails whipping. In the commotion, the two plummeted, still interlocked. Pyrothraxus gripped the neck of Ithfaedeus tightly with his jaws, and Ithfaedeus did the same thing as they fell from the sky. Jake glanced up as Lao Shi landed, pointing weakly at the two falling dragons.

"Dad…" he breathed just as the two dragons slammed into the ocean. A tidal wave rose up from the impact, and clashed against the beach, spraying water on the spectators.

"Aiya!" Lao Shi cried. "If Jonathan can't get out of the water, he'll drown!"

"What—what happened?" Jake asked, breathing heavily as his mother helped down onto the sand.

"The Dark Dragon is a Black Dragon," said Fu Dog. "He can breathe water—any type, salt, fresh…but your old man, he can't. If Jon doesn't come back up for air soon, he'll die down there. And the pressure will get him too."

"Dad," Jake swallowed, trying to get up off the sand.

"No, Jake!" called Susan. "Just lay there."

Haley glanced over at Fu Dog and tapped his shoulder. She stood some away from her mother and brother.

"Hey, Fu, you got any more of those air capsules?" she asked.

"Yeah, why?" Fu asked.

"Dad needs one," she said. "Dad needs help. Jake can't go down there, he's hurt."

"Oh no," Fu shook his head. "If you're thinkin' what I think you're thinkin', it's too dangerous."

"Fu is right, Haley," said Lao Shi, walking up to her. "It's too dangerous."

"But, he's my father too," she began; her eyes began to tear up. "Even if he lied to us—we lied to him. I don't want him to die. I want my father and I want him to be safe—even if that means I have to go down there and give him an air capsule so he can fight the Dark Dragon."

"Against my better judgment…" Lao Shi began. "Fu, give her the capsules."

"You're not expecting her to go down there alone and hope to save her father?" Fu asked.

"Pyrothraxus is the only one who can keep those other dragons in their cells," said Lao Shi. "If the Dark Dragon finds a way to learn this, it could spell doom for us all. And besides—he is my daughter's husband and he is family—even if I don't like him."

Fu sighed as he handed Haley two air capsules: "This is good enough for you and your dad. Though, maybe he might need another one—big lungs and all."

"One should be good enough," said Lao Shi. "It does not matter what size the lungs are. The capsule will produce enough air for the user to breathe with. One problem, a Red Dragon's weakness is in water. Though he can swim, his breath weapon will not be very effective. If he attempts to use it, nothing more than very hot, scalding steam will come from his mouth. It'll boil the water around him—and you as well."

"Instead of a cone of fire that can incinerate you in one shot," began Fu. "He'll just boil all the water around him, and that water will disperse everywhere. He's fighting under a lot of pressure, kid, he might boil you along with the Dark Dragon—by accident, of course."

"I'll be careful," said Haley, as she shifted into a purple-scaled, dragon with black pigtails. Her size did not change when she shape shifted. She took the two pills into her claws and fluttered off as swiftly as her tiny wings could carry her.

"Good—luck, Haley," Jake said as he looked up. Haley dove into the water and took one of the pills. An aura of air spread all around her and she could breathe the water as if it was air. She held on tightly to the other pill, swimming down farther through the water. She felt the water become warmer as she neared where the battle was.

_His lungs must be so huge that he can hold his breath for a long time, _Haley thought. _Like a whale. But he can't hold it for long. And without breathing, he can't use his breath weapon either. Oh—dad, hang on, I'm coming._

Her keen eyes picked up the two as they were fighting. Pyrothraxus looked like he was trying to fight against Ithfaedeus, hoping desperately that he could get away from his enemy to swim to the surface for air. Haley saw her father's face, it was turning purple like her scales. That was not a good sign. Those two glowing orbs of molten lava that he had for eyes looked bulged out. His cheeks even looked inflated slightly as he was still trying to hold his breath. She could tell he was suffocating and he was weakening from the lack of oxygen. Pyrothraxus gritted his teeth and barred his fangs, air bubbles escaped from his opened jaws. He kicked the Dark Dragon in the head with one of his hind feet. He bellowed out as he was sent backwards into the murky dark. Pyrothraxus beat his wings, trying to swim towards the surface. He was struggling so much to reach the surface, but his body was in pain from the fight and from the lack of oxygen. Stars appeared before his eyes. He gripped his throat and clawed at the water around him. If he could tear in this ocean, he would be shedding them right now. He did not want to drown, he did not want to die and not see his son and daughter again. The Crimson Dragon felt his eyes began to close as a chill slowly rolled over to him. It was as if he could feel the cold hands of Death reach out to touch his face. He did feel hands on his face and he opened his eyes for a moment to look at them. It was Haley in dragon form.

"Dad," she said. "Don't worry. I'm here to help you. Open your mouth."

Pyrothraxus blinked in confusion for a moment, the lack of oxygen was going to his head. He could not tell if he was seeing a hallucination from not being able to breathe, or this was some trick of Ithfaedeus.

"Dad, please," Haley pleaded. "Just trust me. I got an air capsule. You need to open your mouth so you can take it. It'll help you breathe like me."

Pyrothraxus gave in and his massive jaws parted open just slightly. It was enough for Haley to throw the pill between his enormous molars. His lips closed and his jaws became shut again. Pyrothraxus lifted his head slightly and swallowed. Then, the air aura appeared around him as well.

"Breathe, daddy," she said. "Just breathe."

He took his first breath and his vision began to clear up. He felt his strength returning, but it was still not enough. He had lost so much oxygen his whole body was fatigued.

"_H—Haley…" _he began, still gasping for air.

"It's okay, dad," she said. "You're okay now."

"_That's what you think…" _began a cold voice. Pyrothraxus glanced down as he felt his tail being tugged at. _"I will have what I want, Crimson Dragon!"_

"_Haley," _Pyrothraxus began. _"Get away now."_

"But, dad," Haley began.

"_No!" _Pyrothraxus interrupted her before she could protest any further. _"I'm going to release my breath on him. I'm going to scald him."_

"Fu said you can't use your fire under water," she protested.

"_It's not going to come out as fire, dear," _he began. _"But it's going to be extremely hot. And I don't want you to get hurt, so swim!"_

Haley nodded and started to swim away. As soon as she got a good enough distance from Pyrothraxus, she glanced back to see him taking in a deep breath. Ithfaedeus swam up towards Pyrothraxus, growling and hissing at him. But just before he could attack, the Red Wyrm exhaled. Out came instead of fire, scalding hot, steamy water. Ithfaedeus felt the boiling water across his face and his eyes. It burned him so much and he let loose a bellowing roar of pain, flinging back down to the depths again. It was going to take a long while for him to recover from the burns of boiling hot salt water. Pyrothraxus was exhausted. He swam slowly up towards the surface and lifted his head up out of the water. Haley came up too and climbed upon his head and flew off, circling him. She could tell her father was weakened, he was having trouble trying to keep his head above the water. Unfortunately, once one's head came up out of the water, the affects of the air capsule wore off.

"Dad!" Haley cried. "Turn back into your human form and I'll fly you towards the shore."

"_I—can't do that," _Pyrothraxus panted as he sluggishly moved through the water. _"I'm—the opposite of you. It takes my magic to help me retain my human form. I'm so weakened I can't even muster a spell to transform me back into Jonathan Long. I have to rest first—before I can shift back into human form."_

She slowly flew with him, watching him closely as he made it to shore. Pyrothraxus panted as he lifted his shaking body out of the water. He slowly limped over to where his son and wife were. And then, he collapsed near them, sending sand flying and a tremor through the ground. His head laid on its side, his body was contorted in an awkward position. One wing hung limp over his flank while the other laid extended over the beach. One eye was half-lidded and a glowing point that looked like a pupil rolled over to where Susan and Jake were. His jaws were parted and his ribs heaved in an out as he panted for air. His forked tongue hung over his canines. Susan could hear the sound of his breath wheezing in and out as he took it.

"Daddy!" Haley cried as she reverted back to her human form. She laid her head against the underside of his neck and heard the sound of his heart beat through his throat.

"Jonathan!" Susan called.

"Dad?" Jake weakly began, looking up at the collapsed Red Dragon before him. He saw his father's only open eye blink through many lids. Apparently his father's draconic species had more than one pair of lids. And then, he saw all the lids in his father's open eye close one by one.

"Fu," began Lao Shi. "Make some shrinking powder."

"Huh?" he asked. "What for?"

"For Jonathan," Lao Shi replied. "He's too weak to use magic. Now, go make some."

"Right, I'm goin'," Fu sighed as he went back into the house. Within about ten minutes, he came back out with a bag of powder. Susan was laying her head against Pyrothraxus' head, hearing the sound of his deep breathing. His breath sounded labored and she could hear him wheezing as he took a breath.

"Yeah, stand back, you all don't wanna end up the size of ants when I throw this stuff on him," said Fu. Susan stood back away from her husband and watched as Fu Dog threw the powder over the body of the enormous dragon. Pyrothraxus' body shrank down swiftly until he was only slightly larger than a human.

"Luckily, this potion requires an antidote to return him back to his true size," said Fu. "So, there won't be any worries about it wearing off and he can just lay on a bed and sleep all he wants until he gets well."

"Let's get him inside," said Lao Shi as he glanced up at the sky. He sensed that the storm above them was about to rain upon them. Several dragons walked up and grabbed Pyrothraxus, lifting his limp body up as best as they could. Fu Dog helped out.

"Yeesh," he grunted. "It's obvious; this guy needs to lay off the rice rolls. The sugar isn't doing anything for his weight."

They brought Pyrothraxus inside just as it started to rain. Susan pulled out the futon and the other dragons laid the Red Wyrm down on it. She noticed her husband's eye lids droop open for a moment. It was only one eyelid that opened up, the eye was still hidden behind two other eyelids. Her sister Cathy got out a blanket and some pillows and handed them to Susan. She tucked the pillow under her husband's horned head and tossed the blanket over his muscular, fiery scaled body. She tucked his wings in and pulled him close to her allowing his head to rest on her chest. And then, as she held him, she started to weep, burying her head into his scales.

Jake was placed into another room and his wounds were anointed. He looked out the door and saw his mother weep over his father's almost deathly still body. He had a feeling he knew what it was about. Lao Shi walked over and rubbed his daughter's head.

"What's wrong, my daughter?" he asked her.

"I—I just began to realize just how screwed up this family is," she wept. "All the lies. This never would have happened if we told him and he told us. We've been lying to each other for years. He lied to us about who he was and we lied to him about who we were."

"You know the rules on telling our secret," Lao Shi sighed. "The Dragon Council forbids us from showing the mortal world of our magical ways."

"But Jonathan is not of the mortal world, dad!" she screamed at him. "Look at him. He's—he's a dragon too."

"He—made his choice when he knew what he was trying to hide," said Lao Shi, his voice growing solemn. "In order for him to keep his secret to make sure that no one—magical or otherwise got a hold of that gate and opened it, he had to separate himself from the magical world. He had to pretend to be human even to other magical creatures; pretend that he was not a dragon that he knew nothing about the magical world when he clearly did. And it worked. We were all fooled, both magical and non. He made it to where no one knew of his identity, and what legacy he had was lost in legend. Besides the Dark Dragon, our Jonathan here is the only member of the Ancient Dragon race that still roams the world. All the others of his kind have disappeared from this world—even this dimension, or trapped in some sort of hellish prison. From what I can tell from his aura is that he has yet to ascend—to become fully immortal like most his brethren have been known to do."

"He hasn't ascended?" Susan asked as she glanced down at Pyrothraxus.

"No," replied Lao Shi. "Pyrothraxus has not. Though, no doubt it's crossed his mind. It would allow him to stay at his post for all eternity. I'm sure he only has a few hundred years left on his life. He is a Great Wyrm after all—he is the equivalent of a senior citizen in Ancient Dragon years. Though Ancients continue to become more powerful as they age, in the latter decade of their life, they will feel the weight of old age come crashing down upon them and their continued life will be a struggle against Father Time and their own will. Sooner or later they will succumb old age and finally die. But he will die long after you have grown old and died of old age yourself, even long after Jake and Haley have grown old and died. He will see his wife, his children, and even his grandchildren die before he dies of old age. I suppose that is one of the reasons why he did not tell you."

"_One of the reasons…among many…Lao Shi,"_ began a weakened voice. Susan glanced down and saw Pyrothraxus turning his head to look up at her. Only his other eye lids were open, his eyes still hidden behind two other layers of eyelids. _"I'm sorry, Susan. Forgive me, please."_

"Jonathan…" she breathed as she held to him tighter. "I'm sorry too. We've lied to each other for so long—it seems like we don't know each other. You had to lie to me and I had to lie to you. I'm sick of it, Jonathan. Now that we know about each other, we need to be truthful with each other. We need to get to know each other again."

Pyrothraxus let loose a small, yet dark chuckle from his throat: _"Hi, I'm Jonathan Long."_

"Jon!" Susan began to giggle when she heard him introduce himself to her.

"_I'm a dragon, by the way,"_ he continued, still weakly. _"I'm a part of an ancient race of dragons—dragons that are enormous. Most of us…have gone from this world. I'm here because I guard a gate that holds terrible things inside and I don't want them to get out."_

"I'm Susan," she said. "And I'm a dragon too. But I'm from the younger race of dragons that have taken your race's place as guardians of this world. You left us in charge of keeping everything magical safe, so we have. But sometimes the powers of the dragon skips a generation, so I can't transform like my father can. My sister can't either."

"_Well, what are two representatives of the two dragon races going to do?"_ Pyrothraxus asked.

"Have kids and grow old together," Susan replied.

"_You know, if we grow old, you'll age before—I will,"_ said Pyrothraxus, swallowing as he opened his second pair of eye lids. His eyes glowed brighter when he opened them up. _"And if we have kids, I'll probably—see them grow old and have kids—and die."_

"I know," Susan nodded, wiping a tear from her eyes and sniffling. "But that's what 'till death do us part' means don't it? One of us will die—and sometimes it is before the other."

"_You—don't mind?"_ Pyrothraxus asked.

"No," she replied. "I don't. You don't mind me being a dragon who is stuck in a human form?"

"_No,"_ he said. _"I don't. I love you, Susan."_

"I love you, Jonathan," Susan smiled as she leaned down to kiss his scaly lips. She felt herself slide on top of him as they kissed. His wings spread out and then folded around her, enveloping her in their warm embrace. And they just continued to kiss each other. She felt his grip on her loosen as his eyes began to close again, lid after lid. He was still tired and weak from his fight. Susan pulled herself under the covers and nuzzled up against her husband's plated chest. Pyrothraxus rumbled when he felt his wife get under the covers with him and held her closely in his arms. As she nuzzled close to him, she felt his forked tongue flicker out and lick her cheek. It was not a sign of sensual urges or anything like that, it was a way one of his race showed affection to another that they loved, like how a dog would lick someone they liked very much. And she liked the way that tongue felt on her skin. His breath was hot and it warmed the chill out of her bones. She felt so safe in those arms of his.

Lao Shi smiled slightly and turned away, walking in where Jake and Haley were. Haley shared a room with Jake, making sure that he was alright through the night. Jake peeked through the door to find his parents snuggling up to each other on the futon. He smiled slightly when he saw that. Usually he would be grossed out about his parents snuggling each other, or embarrassed, but this was a good sign. His parents were not fighting each other because both of them had lied. His parents were still very much in love with each other and were trying to restart their relationship after nearly 20 years of lies about who they really were. And now, even more so than ever because of what he learned about his father's true past, he wanted to know everything about it. He wanted to know what training his father had for him, and he knew it was going to be none of that ridiculous Cougar Scout routines. His father had huge plans for his son about teaching him of the ways of the Ancients. He saw how powerful his father was in the air, though he had a feeling it was just the tip of the iceberg. He wanted to know what this ascension was that his father chose not to partake in and why. For the first time in his life, he had a feeling that he was going to get closer to his father than he had ever dreamt of. He never was very close to his father in the first place, especially after discovering his own dragon powers which he thought was mostly passed down from his mother. As the American Dragon, he had duties and he could not tell his father any of that. So, he lost touch with his father, much to Jonathan's displeasure. Jonathan wanted to be a good father to his son and be close to him the way a father and a son should be, but Jake's duties made him more estranged to his father than ever. He had become closer to his grandfather because Lao Shi was his Dragon Master. Even Haley started to grow apart from her father when she began to learn from Sun Park, the Korean Dragon. But Jake had a feeling that every duty Jake had as the American Dragon his father—as the Crimson Dragon—was watching from afar to make sure he was safe. Jake smiled at that. His father just wanted to be close to his son and daughter. Now, they were going to be close.

"How's my dad, Grandpa?" Jake asked as Lao Shi walked in.

"He's doing just fine, Jake," said Lao Shi. "Just resting. Your mother is taking care of him."

"I'm glad they're not fighting about all of this," said Jake.

"Yeah, me too," said Haley. "I don't think I could ever get over mom and dad fighting. It could warp my fragile existence and completely crash my world."

"Uh," began Lao Shi. "Well, they're not fighting. Actually, both are taking this well. Pyrothraxus—your father Jonathan—and your mother Susan are trying to make up for all the years of lies."

"That's a lot of years," said Haley. "Almost 15 years to be exact. Mom and dad met in high school, right?"

"Yes," Lao Shi replied. "Though, I did not like the idea of Susan dating someone who I thought was just an ordinary human. I don't mind her dating humans—just as long as they had ties to the magical world, like a wizard or a witch. Jonathan Long hid his true identity so well that he even was off the radar of the Dragon Council. Not even they knew about him being Pyrothraxus, the Keeper of the Gate."

"Dad—really must have been trying to make sure no one got to it to even hide himself from the Council," said Jake. "That—gate must be really important to guard if he didn't want even us to know about his true identity."

"The gate that your father guards is a doorway to another dimension," Lao Shi replied. "A terrible dimension that is filled with a horror that will drive anyone mad. It is called the Nine Hells. The three other Chromatic Dragons that were thrown in the gate to be sealed up for eternity are probably maddened from being inside that dark dimension and who knows what thoughts they may have if they are released from it."

"That bad, huh?" Jake asked.

"Yes," said Lao Shi. "Therefore, your father had a very good reason not to tell any of us."

"Of course, me being caught by the Dark Dragon didn't help him keep his secret," said Jake. "He chose to sacrifice his identity to save me."

"He loves you very much, Jake," said Lao Shi. "And he loves you as well, Haley. I'm afraid that this is not over. The Dark Dragon knows about your father. But not only that, the Council must know as well. I will have to call them."

"What will they do?" asked Jake.

"I don't know," said Lao Shi. "I don't know. But at least we know why both you and Haley have wings. My family never rarely had wings. We're eastern dragons, we don't normally have wings."

"So, how do we tell the Dragon Council about dad?" Jake asked.

"When both you and your father are better, we'll return to New York," said Lao Shi. "Then, I will notify the Dragon Council. I want to go there alone to tell them about your father before I present Pyrothraxus to them. I want to prepare them."

"This isn't gonna end well, is it?" Jake asked.

"No," said Lao Shi. "It's not. They will be furious to know that an Ancient has been hiding in our family for years and we have not known about it. They'll probably be angrier at me for not trying to find out about the history of Jonathan Long. I'll need to ask him about that as well. But I will save it until he is better."

Jake glanced back at his father and mother as they curled up under the covers.

"Right now," Jake began with a smile. "I'm just glad we're not lying to each other anymore. Grandpa, I know that we had a reason not to tell dad about us—and he also had a very good reason not to tell us about him, but that's no way for a family to live, is it?"

"No," Lao Shi replied. "It is not. Families should be truthful, because they are the ones who you should count on the most. You should never try to do anything that would harm your family and vice versa. It is because we had to deceive your father was one of the reasons why I did not want my daughter marrying him. If he was not Pyrothraxus and did not have to disguise himself as a human—and not tell us that he's a dragon—and he was just an ordinary magical creature we would not be going through this. Your mother had fears that if Jonathan were to find out about us he would leave your mother—he would hate all of us and think that we were against him. And if he was a normal human, that would have happened if he found out. But him being Pyrothraxus—and having a secret of his own to hide made him just as guilty for deception as we were. I suppose that's why it's working out so well."

"I guess, that means you can accept him more too, huh?" Jake asked.

"Yes," Lao Shi replied. "I can. Don't get me wrong, human Jonathan is a good father to you and Haley—but…"

"He's not a magical creature," said Haley. "Almost sounds like your prejudice, Grandpa."

"I'm not prejudice!" Lao Shi cried defensively. "But we magical creatures will never forget the Dark Times—when non-magical humans hunted us down because they feared us. We were persecuted for being what we are. Of course part of the Ancient Draconic race—that being the Chromatic Dragons didn't help the situation either. It is better that all humans not know about us—all non-magical humans that is."

"Trixie and Spud are taking it well though," said Jake.

"They are more accepting to us because of you, Jake," said Lao Shi. "And I believe that because you three are good friends and trust one another, that is why they are accepting of you. But they are just two humans among millions that will not."

"Were there just only Chromatic Dragons that were Ancients?" asked Haley.

"No, there were the Metallic Dragons as well," said Lao Shi. "There were two varieties. At one time, they were both neutral parties, guardians of the world—until the Chromatics became vain as the legend dictated—and then evil. But the Metallics remained neutral—taking on some good qualities as well to balance the evil that the Chromatics were causing and continued their guardian role. And a war started between them. They fought until the world was devastated. Many of them died, others were killed by dragon slayers—like what the Huntsclan is now. Only six Chromatic Dragons were left after the war, Zestos the Fire Dragon, a Red Wyrm with an imposing glare and powers over earth and fire. Zestos' favorite ability is creating magma constructs with his magic. Pyrothraxus the Crimson Dragon, a Great Red Wyrm with powers over wind and fire. Pyrothraxus can call up a fire storm in an instant and super heat the air with his flames, then using his wind magic, he can create tornadoes of fire that obey his command, which is why he is sometimes referred to by mortals as Firestorm. Shäzyx the Lightning Dragon, a Blue Wyrm with the powers over lightning and storms. She can create tornadic winds and send lightning through them as well as call upon some of the most violent storms. Ithfaedeus, the Dark Dragon, a Black Wyrm that spits acid and controls darkness and sound. He can create darkness so deep and thick, that it would drive you mad as well as banishing all sounds around you except the sound he wants you to hear. Venoshus, the Poison Dragon, a Green Wyrm that breathes out toxic chlorine gas from his mouth, and can poison the air and water around him. And then there is Glaecialyx the Frost Dragon. She is a Great White Wyrm that controls blizzards and can make the air so cold it'll kill you in an instant—like being dunk into liquefied nitrogen. Her combination of wind and frost can make the blizzards we see in New York seem like a dusting."

"Whoa…" Jake breathed. "Dad's really powerful with those wind and fire spells. I aught to know. I saw his tornado that night. I'm surprise he didn't use them on the Dark Dragon out there."

"I'm afraid that he did not want to risk burning us along with the Dark Dragon," said Lao Shi.

"That's not a good idea to burn your family," grinned Haley. "But there were six that were left over, two Red Dragons and then the others."

"Pyrothraxus betrayed the others and locked them behind the gate when he found out that what his kind was doing was destroying the planet," said Lao Shi. "As the legend goes, but he can give you more details when he is better and more up to telling a story."

"Can't wait," said Jake. "I'd love to hear a real story about the days of old from him."

"His days are certainly old," said Lao Shi. "Older than mine. Now, get some rest."

"Right," he nodded as he laid back down on the bed. Haley followed his example and began to rest as well. Lao Shi glanced back out the door, seeing Pyrothraxus and Susan, still huddled up together under the covers. He walked over to them and pulled the covers higher over their shoulders. He heard the sound of the Red Dragon's tail as it thumped softly against the mattress. Pyrothraxus licked once more softly at his wife's cheek. He seemed to be doing it subconsciously; if he woke up he probably would not even remember that he did it. The scene itself looked almost cute. Every one was asleep in the household. Even Fu had already curled up for bed. Lao Shi decided to go to bed as well.


	5. Morning Jitters

**Morning Jitters**

The next morning, it was a slow start for everyone. Gregory, Jake's little annoying cousin, knelt down and stared directly at his uncle Pyrothraxus—or Uncle Jon as he got to know him. Susan had gotten out of the bed and replaced her spot in Pyrothraxus' arms with a pillow. And he was nuzzling it like it was his wife. The Dragon was delirious, still weakened by the battle from last night. But Gregory still stared intently at him, studying him. From what he heard about who his uncle really was, he was more than thrilled to be related to him—even if it was by marriage.

Pyrothraxus went from a deep sleep to a doze, slowly returning from his dreams were everything made sense and he thought he was a normal human and he continued to pretend his family were not a part of the younger race and he could continue to live on—keeping them from his horrible truth. He shook his head as his eyes began to open, each lid opening up one by one until those glowing orbs of yellow and orange that burned like two hot coals were exposed for all to see. Gregory swallowed his saliva when he saw those two glowing orbs inside the fiery red-scaled sockets. Pyrothraxus blinked again, each lid blinking away the sleep from his eyes. And he looked directly at Gregory. His eyes became crossed slightly when he saw the kid just stare at him. And then Pyrothraxus sat up in the bed, holding the covers around his body.

"_Susan?"_ he asked. _"Susan? Lao Shi?"_

Pyrothraxus tried to get up out of the bed, pulling the covers away from him. He shakingly got to his feet and made an attempt at taking his first step.

"_Susan?"_ he asked as he tried to walk away from the futon, only to fall flat on his stomach. _"Ow…Susan? Help."_

"Jonathan?" she asked as ran towards him. She knelt down and helped him back onto the bed, laying him down and covering him back up. "You shouldn't be up, you're not well. Why did you get up?"

"_Gregory was staring at me,"_ he growled as he laid his head back down.

"Gregory, don't stare," Susan said. "Go—go see what your mother wants."

"Sure," Gregory shrugged as he left.

"Daddy!" called Haley when she saw that he was awake. She jumped into the futon and that produced a shocked grunt from her father.

"Easy now!" warned Susan. "He's still not well."

"_Hey, pumpkin!" _Pyrothraxus grinned.

"Jake started snoring, so I couldn't get any sleep last night," said Haley. "And, also he started sucking his thumb too. Did you know that he still does that?"

"_Snore or suck his thumb?"_ asked Pyrothraxus.

"Suck his thumb," said Haley.

He could not help but to laugh at his daughter. She had a way of telling about Jake's most private secrets, except the whole dragon 'thing'.

"_C'mere you!"_ Pyrothraxus grinned, drawing his daughter into his arms and started tickling her with is bony claws. She giggled loudly as he tickled her. Though he did not have any strength to walk, he had enough to start a tickle fight with his own daughter.

"Honey!" Susan began. "Stop, you're still not well."

He leaned back and gasped for air, but still there was a smile on his face.

"Dad," began Haley. "Everyone says you're a Red Dragon, but you're not completely red."

"_What?"_ he asked. _"Haley, what do you mean by that?"_

"You've got black tiger stripes along the back of your neck and part of your forearms and running down your back and you tail and part of your hind legs," she replied. "And your neck frill that runs from your head to your tail fades to purple and so do the edge of your wing membranes, and they look frayed. They look like they are about to tear apart. You should have them looked at by a trained doctor. And your under belly plates that run from under your chin to the tip of your tail, they're a light tan color. So, really, you should be the red, purple, black, and tan dragon. And your eyes don't have pupils, how are you able to see? My teacher says that eyes without pupils are blind. Are you blind, dad?"

"_No," _Pyrothraxus grunted slightly as he lifted her up and sat her down in his lap. _"I'm not blind. I can see fine with these eyes—in fact twice as good as you and Jake in your dragon forms. And my pupils fade as I get older, my eyes becoming nothing more than two glowing orbs of fire. That's normal, as well as my tiger stripes, my purple frills and my frayed wings. Red Dragons always had a burnt look to their wings. And my belly scales are supposed to be this color, why do you think Jake has that color? In fact, Jake as a lot of my features in his dragon form. Seems like you were born with a mixture of your grandfather's features and mind."_

"Why do you say that?" Haley asked.

"_Because you're purple," _he replied. _"And your grandfather was blue, and your mother was born from a blue dragon, and your father is a red dragon—so you turned out purple."_

"So, mixing blue with red made purple?" she asked.

"_That's basically how I see it," _Pyrothraxus said.

"That's real corny, dad," said Haley. "I'm gonna have to tell that to Sun Park when I see her."

Pyrothraxus hugged her tightly: _"Thank you for saving me last night. I would have drowned if it weren't for you."_

"I'm sure Jake would have come and rescued you," said Haley. "But his leg was broken. So I had to do it. It's my duty as a dragon to save magical creatures." Then she leaned into his hug. "Even if one of those magical creatures is my dad."

"_That's my girl," _Pyrothraxus smiled.

"Dad," began a small voice. He glanced up to see his son Jake leaning on a crutch, walking in. "You're better?"

"_I'm still a little weak, son," _said the Red Dragon. _"But your old man has incredible recuperation powers. I'm a lot better than I was yesterday. I see you're better too, Jake. Come on, pile in."_

"Yeah," Jake nodded as he climbed onto the futon. "I'm glad you're better."

"_I'm fine," _he said. _"But I've been better. I didn't expect Ithfaedeus to dive us both into the ocean. None of my fire spells work very well under water."_

"Grandpa said that he's going to go to the Dragon Council," said Jake. "He's gonna tell them about you."

"_I had a feeling this would happen," _Pyrothraxus sighed. _"Well, I suppose he's wanting to know the truth about myself to tell those Councilors something, eh?"_

"Basically," Jake nodded. "You nailed it, dad."

"_Alright, then," _Pyrothraxus sighed. _"Come on, lean in. I won't go into the gory details about Ancients, but I will give you a rough summery of our position back then and what possessed me to take on a human identity. Back then, before the Dark Times, there weren't dragons like you all—or your grandfather, or the Dragon Council you know today. There was a Dragon Council, but it didn't have the dragons that you know of now. It was run by ten Councilors, each one representing the color of the two Ancient Dragon races. One the side of the Chromatics were red, blue, green, black, and white, and on the side of the Metallics were gold, silver, bronze, brass, and copper. We were all neutral and like you, we were the most powerful magical creatures in the world. And then, we got arrogant. We became so arrogant that a few of us decided to try to enslave the world, which is why the war happened and the Dark Ages—or Dark Times to us—happened. And things got worse, mostly it was caused by my brethren the Chromatics, who were selfish, greedy, wanting only power for themselves. But the Metallics were no better. Many of them were aloof, arrogant, thinking the reason why they did good was to help those who they perceived as 'less fortunate' than they were. Kinda like the way some celebrities help out the poor—for only their own selfish pride in building themselves up more. So, basically our race was doomed to our own self destruction."_

"Yikes," said Jake.

"_Yes," _he said. _"And we were taking the magical world down with us. That was when, a few of us, mostly Metallic Dragons and—well—me—decided to make it up and venture to a new dimension. But first we had to clean up the mess. There were five Chromatic Dragons left that were still on the wrong side of the war. And so, I used a special seal and created a gate to a dimension where I sealed them in and any follower they had. That ice giant you faced was one of Glaecialyx's lackeys. And so, afterwards, the Metallics retreated to their special plane of existence and me—being the odd-man, a Chromatic who had become good—did not belong in either planes. I was told to stay here and guard it. But as the Metallics retreated, they gave a specific group of humans draconic powers and that began the new race of dragons, the younger race. You modeled your council after ours and found that the non-magical world could not cope with the knowledge of magical creatures being around. So, you hid yourselves and forbade anyone non-magical from knowing. I was kept here to look after the gate. And so, I stayed at my post—for hundreds of years and then I got bored."_

"And you became a human," said Susan. "That's it? That's the great big story? You got bored and became human?"

"_Yup," _he replied. _"I knew that without me, no one could open the gate, so I left it. I traveled everywhere, adding to my hoard, then it was the modern world and I settled down and became human—over and over again. In the 70s, I disguised myself as a small, 3-year old orphan named Jonathan, and was adopted by the Long family. So, I went with it and grew up, becoming Jonathan Long. I went to the Cougar Scouts, I played basketball, football, and other sports. And then, when I went to high school, I met Susan and fell in love."_

"Oh, honey," she grinned. "But I have to ask you, did you always know that I was a dragon?"

"_No," _he said with a slight chuckle. _"In fact, I never knew until our wedding night when I saw Aunt Mai sneezing, transforming as she sneezed. You pushed me into the wedding cake and told me it was a Chinese tradition."_

"You already saw that?" she asked. "So, when you found out, you just kept your mouth shut."

"_That's right," _Pyrothraxus nodded. _"I knew then that you didn't want to tell me. And I had my secret to keep as well, so I said nothing. I'm sorry, my love."_

"Dad, if you sealed them in, how did that ice giant and the Dark Dragon escape?" asked Jake.

"_It is possible that the seal is becoming weak, so weak that individuals can pass through," _said Pyrothraxus. _"But when that ice giant escaped and we defeated him, I returned to the gate and strengthened it again. The only one who can open that gate is me. Ithfaedeus was obviously trying to capture you and lure me in so that I would open it for him."_

"Dad," began Jake. "I heard Grandpa talk about ascending. What does that mean?"

"_Ascension?" _he asked. _"It's what a Great Wyrm dragon does to stop time for himself. He basically becomes completely immortal—except death can be brought on only by being slain—being killed by someone stabbing or shooting or blowing up that dragon. He can neither die of old age or die of sickness and poisons. Many of my kind did that in order to be protectors. I have not."_

"Why?" Haley asked.

"_Because I think it's arrogant to become immortal," _he said. _"Let's just say I wasn't very happy with the way my kind has done things. One of the reasons why I asked that when the draconic powers was to be passed on to humans that they would not be given a dragon's lifespan. As you are born human so shall you have a human's lifespan, so shall you grow old and die like a human. Age will not make you arrogant like it has my kind. But, unfortunately in order for me to continue my post, I will have to ascend. One of the reasons why I wanted to live as a human for a few decades, so that I will remember not to become arrogant with my immortality. I would remember why I guard that gate."_

"I don't think your plan by make sure us 'younger' dragons live a human lifespan has helped some in that 'arrogant' factor, Dad," said Jake. "A few of them have become a bit stuck-up themselves, but not from living a long life, but from being so powerful."

"_I'll know that when I see them, won't I?" _Pyrothraxus glanced away and his eyes narrowed as they began to burn even more brightly. Jake heard a growl come from his father's throat and saw his father's lips tremble when he growled. His grandfather was right; it was not going to end well.

"Lao-peng-you, ni kan qi-lai hen you jing-shen," began a kind, elderly voice. Pyrothraxus glanced over to see Lao Shi and Fu Dog standing at the foot of the futon.

"_Xie xie,"_ Pyrothraxus replied.

"Bu xie," Lao Shi nodded politely.

"Dad, you know Chinese?" Jake asked.

"_Well, being 5 thousand years old helps some," _Pyrothraxus chuckled.

"Pops, you are representin'," Jake laughed. "I mean for realz."

"_Thanks, son," _Pyrothraxus chuckled.

"That's the nicest thing I ever heard you say to Jonathan, Dad," said Susan.

"Well, he is an Ancient Dragon," said Lao Shi. "And we must respect our elders."

"_Well…I'm as old as one can get," _Pyrothraxus sighed. _"Thanks for reminding me, dad."_

"I don't care if you're an Ancient or not," Lao Shi began, shaking his finger at the Red Dragon. "You are not to call me 'dad'. Now, there is something I do need to discuss with the Dragon Council. One is you, and the other is Jake and your relationship with him."

"_Wonderful," _Pyrothraxus sighed.

"But that is all for now," said Lao Shi. "I will think of more when we return. Which is going to be now! I just had a call that the Huntsclan is hunting the legendary phoenix. We need to return to New York now. You may remain here, Jonathan, until you are well enough to drive home. But Jake and I must return to New York."

"Aw man…" Jake sighed. "And I was hoping that I could—get to know my dad some more and maybe do a little surfin', if you catch my drift."

"That can wait," said Lao Shi. "We must be on a plane now."

Jake's lip quivered as it stuck out. He glanced back at his father, hoping that his father would protest. But Pyrothraxus shook his horned head.

"_You have a duty, my son," _the Red Dragon said. _"And you must do it. After all, I had the same duty. We can connect later when you have more time."_

"Will I get in trouble if I stay out too late doing my 'duty'?" Jake asked.

Pyrothraxus' lips curled into a grin: _"No. You won't. And I'm sorry I've been hard on you. Now, make me proud and save that phoenix. Besides, when you return I've got a surprise for you."_

"Really?" Jake asked. "Sweet! What is it…a new car? Cuz that clunker you drive is embarrassing."

"_No, it's not a new car," _Pyrothraxus chuckled. _"But I do have some—bling-bling I wish to show you."_

"Bling-bling? What bling-bling?"

"_My hoard," _he replied.

"You have a hoard?"

"Ancient Dragons hoarded gold, jewels, magical items, all manner of treasure," said Lao Shi. "Red Dragons are particularly fond of gold and rubies."

"No foolin'?" Jake asked.

"_What do you think I plan to pay your college fund with?" _Pyrothraxus asked. _"You think working as an office junky pays well?"_

"Man, I think I can dig having an Ancient Dragon as a father," grinned his son.

Jake leaned down and wrapped his arms around his father's neck. Pyrothraxus smiled and hugged him tightly. Then, he let his son go and rubbed his son's head with his claw.

"_Wux gethrisj," _Pyrothraxus said. Lao Shi's eyes opened when he heard the ancient Draconic Tongue come from his son-in-law. He still was getting over the shock of Jonathan being an Ancient Dragon. Though the Younger Race has never spoken a world of Draconic, they had heard of it and had a genetic memory on how it sounded. Only the Ancient Race actually used Draconic. Now hearing the ancient language spoken after almost a thousand years just about made Lao Shi's heart leap out of his chest. And Jake, not even hearing it at all in his life, some how instinctively knew his father was telling him 'you should go'. Jake nodded and got up off the futon. He glanced back at his father and smiled again. His father gave him a thumbs up. He and his grandfather left. Fu Dog stayed behind so that he could make up the antidote when the Red Dragon needed it. Pyrothraxus sighed and his head lowered.

"What's wrong?" Susan asked.

"_My kind created men like the Huntsmaster,"_ he sighed. _"Dragon slayers. If it weren't for our deeds, then…"_

"It would have been someone else's," said Susan. "Don't blame yourself."

"_Here's one thing I'll blame myself for," _he began as he lifted himself up. _"Being a fat, lazy lizard."_

"Honey!" Susan called as she saw him lift up off the futon. Pyrothraxus seemed to be getting a hold of himself again as he began to walk around the living room. She watched as he began to stretch himself, arching his back and rear up and sticking his tail out, like a giant cat would. Pyrothraxus extended his wings slightly, but was disappointed that he could not extend them fully out. He pawed the rug as he stretched, leaning forward to now stretch out his front legs, lowering his rear and raising his neck and shoulders.

"_Fu, go make up the antidote," _he began as he walked outside.

"Uh, right," said Fu as he started to make up the batch.

"Honey," Susan called again. "You're still not well."

Pyrothraxus growled for a moment and shook his head: _"I'm well enough though. I can't lay in bed all day knowing that at any moment my son could be used in a ploy to get to me. I have to get up and return to New York. That's one of the reasons why my kind was destined for destruction." _He turned back around and stared straight into her eyes. _"We were lethargic, we procrastinated. Of course it did not look like procrastination to us because of our long life spans, but living as a human I began to see that I could get so much more done in my life if I just wake up and smelled the coffee. This is so much bigger than my son can handle. These are monsters that we put away because they were so powerful. My son got lucky with the Dark Dragon those two times, he had help, but facing not only Ithfaedeus, but the rest of the Chromatic group—I'm just scared for him."_

Susan took him into her arms and leaned her head against his rough, plated neck.

"_I'm not going to leave you behind, Susan," _he purred, sitting down on his haunches and wrapping his arms around her waist. _"But that last fight told me that I need to do some training as well. I hadn't fought like that in centuries. So, I'm gonna take a lap around the island."_

Pyrothraxus lightly nipped at her neck, something Susan always loved. She smiled and pulled his head close to her. Susan brought her lips close to his and pressed them together into a lengthy kiss. Fu walked outside with the antidote made, his eyes widening when he saw the two kissing each other passionately.

"Eh…jeeze, can't you two get a room?" he sighed.

The two pulled themselves away, looking back at Fu. Susan was blushing, and Pyrothraxus turned an even brighter shade of red. And he leaned in, nuzzling his snout against her neck.

"Okay, the antidote has been made," said Fu.

Pyrothraxus rumbled and kissed his wife one more time on the lips. Then, he stepped away from her. Susan felt a chill shiver her shoulders as she suddenly felt cold. She wanted to be in the warming arms of her husband again. Pyrothraxus nodded to Fu Dog and the magical creature threw the antidote onto the Red Dragon's body. Pyrothraxus' form grew back to his normal size. The Crimson Dragon reared his head back and spread his wings wide, letting loose a powerful, bellowing roar when he was returned to his normal size. The ground shook from the sound of his voice. Susan listened to the sound of his roar. She could faintly hear the sound of her husband's human voice cry out with a mixture of lion roars and elephant loud trumpets. And then, when he stopped his throat let loose a growl, like the sound that a big cat would make as it breathed, the air passing over the large, loose vocal chords.

"_Be back in a minute," _he said cheerfully as he galloped down the beach. As soon as he was about a football field length from them, Pyrothraxus launched into the air, beating those enormous wings until he rose up into the mid morning clouds. And all Susan could do was smile as she watched him fly around the island, growing stronger with each passing. She knew that hard times were going to come and many trials awaited her family. For now, she knew that she was going to take them in stride as long as she had her husband and her children beside her. At least they were being truthful now.


	6. Family Feud

**Family Feud**

Jake glanced back just as the Forest Giant smacked him in the head. The Phoenix was caged by the Huntsclan. Jake had it all handled and was about to free the fiery bird when this Forest Giant showed up. Now both enemies were trying to handle this new foe. He was backhanded to the ground as the Huntsclan fired their beams at the giant. One particular huntsman glanced back when Jake was knocked out cold.

"Jake…" she breathed. It was Huntsgirl Rose. She glanced back at the others, making sure that they were occupied. Then, she ran towards Jake. She held his draconic head close to her. He was out cold. But then, a fireball shot out from the sky and collided with the giant. The Forest Giant combusted into flames, running and screaming around in circles as its flesh began to burn away. Rose glanced up and saw _him _land. The Huntsmaster's eyes widened when he saw the enormous Red Dragon land. The Red Dragon reared back again and shot out another fireball from his mouth. The ball exploded and the Forest Giant was nothing more than a pile of ashes on the street.

"Fire at that dragon!" the Huntsmaster cried. Rose grabbed Jake and darted for the shadows, ducking down behind a trash dumpster. The Red Dragon bellowed as his plated chest was pelted by the beams from the staff weapons that the Huntsclan had. Jake's eyes opened at the sound of the roar.

"Dad!" he cried.

"Dad?" Rose asked.

"Rose…" Jake swallowed, raising a claw to her cheek. "What happened?"

"That giant hit you really hard," she replied. She glanced back again and saw that the Huntsclan was not fairing well against the Red Dragon. "Is that what I think that is? As that an Ancient Dragon?"

"That's my dad," Jake smiled.

"Wait, I thought he was human," Rose glanced back at her draconic boyfriend.

"He's got a secret too," he said. "And that's it."

Pyrothraxus bellowed again and reared his head back to howl. The wind picked up around the Huntsclan. Jake saw as the Red Dragon called forth two dusty twisters by the sound of his voice. And they were swept away by the gusty winds. Jake then realized just what Fu meant by calling his father the Dragon of Wind and Fire. Just as the flames of his body were a part of him, so were the winds. Pyrothraxus sniffed the air and then turned to the alley where his son and the Huntsgirl were hiding.

"_Come on out, Rose," _he rumbled. _"Bring Jake with you."_

"Dad!" Jake cried as Rose helped him. "You're alright."

Pyrothraxus smiled and nodded. He turned to the caged Phoenix and lifted the latch up with the tip of his tail. The cage opened up and the fiery bird was freed. He saw as the Phoenix flew off, bowing its head in respect to the Great Wyrm. The Phoenix remembered the times of the Ancients. Pyrothraxus returned the gesture and then turned around to peer down at his son. Jake still could not get over the fact that his father knew about magical creatures.

"_Hello, Huntsgirl," _Pyrothraxus said. _"I am…"_

"Pyrothraxus of the Four Winds," she said. "I know of you from the history taught in the Hunts Academy. You were one of the ones who was trying to stop the war between magical and non-magical beings. I just can't believe that you and Mr. Long are the same person, that's all."

Pyrothraxus chuckled as his form shifted and shrank down to his human form. Jonathan crossed his arms and pulled his glasses off, showing his red eyes behind them.

"Believe me now?" he asked.

"Yes," she nodded. Jake ran for his father and wrapped his arms around him. He folded his wings around Jonathan, nuzzling him with his snout.

"I'm glad you're better, father," Jake whispered. "Man, that Giant don't know who he's been messin' with when it comes to the Dragon of Fire and Wind, huh?"

Jonathan grabbed his son's head and laughed, pelting Jake with a hard noogie to the noggin. Jake threw his arms around his father and hugged him close to his own plated chest.

"You're safe, son, that's all that matters to me," he said. Jon pushed his son away and glanced over at the pile of ashes. "That was Venoshus' servant, a Forest Giant. He must have sent it to capture you like Glaecialyx sent the Frost Giant."

"Capture me to get you to open the Gate," said Jake.

"The Gate?" Rose asked. "Not _the _Gate?"

"You know about the Gate he guards?" Jake asked.

"Know about it?" she asked. "They're the soul reason why the Huntsclan formed. Originally, we were on the side of the Ancients—the Metallics—before we went against them as well."

"It's not like we Ancients deserved it," Jon sighed. "We did. We were arrogant, spiteful creatures. Know this, please, Rose, I'm not like them."

"I believe it," Rose smiled. "Jake, I have to go. My uncle might be wondering where I am." She leaned over and gave Jake a kiss on the cheek. "See you in your dreams."

"Bye, Rose," Jake said, smiling as he watched her leap on a building and began to bound from roof top to roof top."

"She seems nice," said Jonathan. "Okay, Jake. I like her. You can go out with her."

Jake glanced back and flushed with embarrassment. He glanced up as he saw his father shape-shift back into his dragon form.

"_Come on, son, let's go home," _said Pyrothraxus. _"Your mother probably thinks I'm out with some Bronx escort or something."_

"Like you would date a ho, pops," Jake chuckled as he launched into the air. He got as high as his father's head and grinned. "Yo, last one to the house is a chump."

"_Oh, you wanna race, huh?" _the Crimson Dragon grinned. _"Not if I beat you first."_

"Man, you don't know what mac-daddy skills the AmDrag has_," _the American Dragon smirked back. "Prepare to eat my dust, dad. Cuz I'm gonna wipe the town with yo scaly mug!"

"_Hah!" _Pyrothraxus chuckled. _"We'll see about who's the real 'mac-daddy' when I'm sitting at home, drinking a warm cup of you mother's tea and you're just getting on the porch."_

"We'll see about that, yo," Jake said as he flew off.

Pyrothraxus spoke a word of magic and he started to fly himself. Then, he flapped his wings and gained altitude. With the combined powers of his _Fly _spell and the strength of the muscles in his wings, he soon streaked passed his own son.

"Yo!" called Jake. "I thought you needed room like an airliner to take off."

"_There are many spells that can help in ones abilities," _said the Red Dragon. _"Austrat is one of them."_

"Hey, that's cheating, dude!" Jake cried as he pumped his wings harder. He flew above his father's massive body. His father's broad wings were outstretched in a glide, only the of the index and second phalange were moving in rhythm, sending a rippling effect through the fourth and fifth phalange. The spines that held the line of violet frill running down from the back of his head to the tip of his tail also rippled with the motion of his father's flight movements. It was almost a beautiful sight to behold. For such an enormous creature, Jonathan 'Pyrothraxus' Long was incredibly graceful. And then the two wings came down in a single beat and sped Pyrothraxus farther from his son. And Jake growled, flapping his wings faster to catch up. He could not see how his father was barely even tiring out in this flight, though he suspected that those enormous wings had something to do with it. Jake smiled though as he dove passed his father. He was flying with his dad—something he never thought he would get a chance to do. Pyrothraxus grinned when he saw his son dive past his head and he folded his wings slightly inward to prepare himself for a dive as well. And the two were in a heated speed chase after that, weaving in and out of the enormous buildings of the city of New York. Jake and his father were laughing the whole way. Jake figured the lower he would get the harder it would be for his father to fly because of those broad wings. But he glanced back, noticing his father was tilted up vertically, one wing straight up, and the other straight down. And yet he was still flying. As Pyrothraxus blew by the buildings, he caused their windows to tremble. He new that if he flew faster, he could shatter them with the force of his own winds. He righted himself up and dove out of the maze of buildings.

Jake saw their house down below and smirked again.

"Hah!" he cried to his father. "I'm gonna win. Eat this!"

"_Yeah, right…" _Pyrothraxus chuckled, diving again. He soon flew past his own son and landed up on the rooftop of their home. _"I win!"_

"Aw man," Jake sighed as he landed on the ground, shifting back into his human form. Pyrothraxus leapt down and shifted to his human form. "That is wack!"

"I can teach you that spell if you like," he said. "That spell will often save you in many occasions. It boosts your natural flying speed as well as gives you the power to fly even in human form."

"Sure," Jake nodded. "But…um…I'm only supposed to have one Dragon Master."

"Well, we'll have to consult with your grandpa then," said Jonathan. "Don't worry about it tonight. Come on, let's get inside. It's chilly out here. And I hate the cold."

They walked in to find Susan and Haley on the couch, watching TV.

"Hey, honey," said Susan. "How was work?"

"Fine, but I was a little detoured," he said. "It's hard being an accountant. Jake, there's something I need to talk to you about."

"What?" Jake asked.

"Remember when we had that parent/teacher conference with Professor Rotwood?" he asked.

"Uh…yeah…" Jake blinked.

"That wasn't Rotwood we were talking to, was it?"

Jake continued to blink.

"Jake," Jonathan continued. "And you think you're in trouble with your grandfather. You can't fool an Ancient with that shape-shifting spell."

"Aw man…" Jake sighed. "I guess all those stuff I did as the American Dragon, I really am gonna get in trouble for."

"No," he said. "Not for your duties, but for the things you did—using magic to fool your parents and such. Magic is not a toy."

Jake sighed.

"Jake's in trouble," grinned Haley.

"Shut-up…" Jake sighed.

"Hiding a troll," said Jonathan. "Luckily he turned out to be my sister's date."

"You knew about that?" Jake asked.

"Getting yourself captured by Rotwood because you were trying to get money off of your scales and claws," said Jonathan.

"Man…" Jake sighed.

"There's a list I want to talk to you about," he continued. "That is no way for the son of an Ancient Dragon to act. I thought Lao Shi taught you better."

"He did…" Jake sighed.

"Honey, don't be so hard on him," Susan began.

"Yes, he did teach you properly, but you need to listen to him," said Jonathan. "But I will have a talk with him tomorrow about your training. There are some things that Lao Shi cannot teach you—but I can. Powers that you have yet to delve into. Ancient Dragon powers. Now that you know who I am, I want to be the one to pass on my knowledge to you."

"Really?" Jake asked.

"Really," said Jonathan. "And when Haley gets old enough too, I want to teach her as well. Sun Park shouldn't mind much."

Susan nodded. Jonathan smiled and rubbed his son's head.

"Don't worry about it too much, kid," he said. "Lao Shi has done well. But again, there are some things you need to learn and he can't teach you them. I hope Lao Shi will listen when we go to him tomorrow."

0

"You want to do what?!" Lao Shi asked. "Teach him?"

"_Train him,"_ said Pyrothraxus. He stood before Lao Shi in his human-sized dragon form in the back of the shop.

"Train him?" Lao Shi asked. "But that's my job. I'm his Dragon Master."

"_There are some things you can't teach Jake,"_ said the Red Dragon_. "But I can. I'm not trying to take your pupil from you."_

"Cao ni zu zong shi ba dai!" Lao Shi cried, shaking his finger at Pyrothraxus.

"_Ouch, that hurt, Lao Shi,"_ he sighed, rolling his fiery eyes.

"Jake can only have one master!" Lao Shi called, reverting into his own dragon form to meet the gaze of Pyrothraxus. "One! Not two! The Dragon Council will not have it."

"_I'm sorry, but this is for Jake's good as well,"_ said Pyrothraxus. "_I can teach him things that you can't."_

"I realize that, but I'm still his Dragon Master," Lao Shi continued. "And I am the only one to teach him what he needs as the American Dragon."

"_What you teach won't be enough!"_ Pyrothraxus bellowed.

"Pi hua!" the Chinese Dragon spat. "What I say that Jake needs to learn, that is what Jake will learn."

"_You're afraid that he'll be spending more time with me,"_ said Pyrothraxus. _"You're afraid that Jake might like spending time and learning things from his own father rather than his grandfather. Because of the relationship you built up on—because you forced him to lie about what he was to me—you took satisfaction in the fact that I couldn't raise him properly. You thought I couldn't because you thought I was a human, and somewhere in that old, stubborn melon you call a head, you still think that you'd be a better teacher and raiser of my son. He's my son, Lao Shi! He should be learning his dragon powers from me."_

"The Dragon Council does not like relatives teaching…" began Fu as he walked in with a mug of coffee.

"_Screw what your council says," _Pyrothraxus roared. _"If it wasn't for what O'eterus and I did, you wouldn't have a council."_

"What?!" Lao Shi swallowed.

"_If it wasn't for us you wouldn't have dragon powers,"_ Pyrothraxus continued.

"Wo de ma he ta de feng-kuang de wai-sheng dou!" Lao Shi cried, flinging his arms in the air. "Wang ba dan, ni shi pian zi!"

"_Pothoc narh-darasv!"_ Pyrothraxus growled back. _"Thric ner! Vor mirth arimaekrix!"_

"Half-dragon?!" Lao Shi cried, knowing exactly what Pyrothraxus just called him. "H—half-dragon! How dare you…"

"_I'm more dragon than you or your pathetic council will ever be,"_ growled Pyrothraxus. _"For one, I'm wasn't born human."_

"Uh-oh…" Fu swallowed. "Yeah, I think there's a TV that needs to be mark down. I'll go—do that."

He quickly ran out of the room.

Lao Shi's face flushed bright red with anger.

"_It seems to me that you're just as arrogant as my Council was,"_ Pyrothraxus continued. _"Thinking I'm some sort of lesser being, when it's usually the other way around. I care a lot about my son."_

"Ni de mu chin shr e ga da wu kwei!" Lao Shi cried.

"_Darasv!"_ bellowed the Red Dragon again. _"I'm not gonna pick a fight with you. But he needs this training that only I can give him."_

"Zhu a, ni ming-ming zhi dao wo shi bang ni zuo shi," Lao Shi sighed. "You he bi zhao wo ma fan ne?"

"_Lao Shi!"_ Pyrothraxus called.

"Fine!" Lao Shi sighed, settling his serpentine body down on a chair. "Fine, I'll approach this to the council when I go."

"_No, we both will,"_ he said. _"And I will appear before them as I am."_

"Ni ta ma de," Lao Shi grumbled under his breath. "Tian xia suoyoude ren. Dou gaisi."

Pyrothraxus rumbled pleasantly as he settled himself down on the rug. Jake came in, poking his head through the door.

"Uh, you guys done in there?" he asked.

"_Yes,"_ said Pyrothraxus.

"It is settled," said Lao Shi. "Your father will come with us to the Isle of Draco for this year's Dragon World Summit."

"Really?" Jake asked, his face brightening up. He heard all of the exchanges of harsh words that his father and grandfather said to each other, staring at each other with daggers in their eyes. It was hard for him to hear them fight like that. He was surprised that they didn't start tearing each other's throats out. Pyrothraxus shook his neck frill. Jake watched the purple-tipped frill flap about when the Red Dragon shook it, hearing that it made a slight rustling sound as it did. Red Dragons always shook their frills when they were frustrated.

"_I am going so that I could get them to understand that you may need two teachers,"_ said his father. _"Because you have powers that are beyond the Younger Race of Dragons. Lao Shi has reservations about that."_

"You can only have one Dragon Master, Jake," said Lao Shi. "Not two. That's how it's always been."

"_You don't want me to get in the way,"_ the Red Dragon snorted. _"It hurts me, Lao Shi, to think that you believe I'm no father to my own son."_

"Your little act to pretend to be human made it clear enough for me then," Lao Shi growled back, shaking his own scales at Pyrothraxus. "You enjoyed acting like a dimwitted buffoon. How do you expect me to perceive you as? Smart?"

"_That's because people would suspect things if I didn't hide my personality as well," _the Red Dragon said. _"I did it to protect you all—even you Lao Shi. If such enemies who were searching for the gate were to have found out about me—they would have killed you to get to me."_

"Dad, grandpa…" Jake sighed. "Come on. We're supposed to be family. It—almost seems like everything was better when we didn't know about each other. At least you two wouldn't be at each other's throats."

"_Jake…"_ Pyrothraxus began, getting up off the floor. He slowly lumbered over to his son and held out his foreleg. _"Come here."_

Jake leaned against the rough breastplates as Pyrothraxus placed his arm around his shoulder.

"_Son, listen,"_ he began, his voice rumbling deeply inside his chest. _"Sometimes I wish I had told your mother when we married. Maybe we wouldn't be where we are right now."_

He glanced up for a moment, seeing Lao Shi shake his wedged-shaped head in dismay. Pyrothraxus snorted, black smoke shooting out of his nostrils. His glowing eyes began to glow even more fiercely at the Chinese Dragon, but that did not seem to intimidate Lao Shi. Then, he sighed a bit again, and his head lowered.

"_Maybe—it's best that I don't come,"_ he began. _"You'll just have to tell me how the Council takes having one Ancient hanging around. But I do think you should consider me teaching Jake the things you can't teach him."_

Pyrothraxus let go of Jake and stood back. He dipped his head respectfully and then vanished in a flash of fire and smoke. Jake lowered his head and his hands curled tightly into balled fists. Lao Shi returned to his human form and began packing his trunk for the trip.

"Come on, Jake," he began. "We need to hurry so we can be on time to appear before the Council."

"I'm not going…" Jake growled at him, gritting his teeth.

"What?" Lao Shi gasped, glancing back at his grandson.

"I said I'm not going," Jake repeated, lifting his head up and looking down at the smaller, elderly man. "I'm staying here."

"You can't," Lao Shi protested. "The Council is expecting both of us."

"If my father doesn't go, then I won't go," Jake crossed his arms in defiance. "This is about him. This about us. And he is right. He could teach me things that you can't."

"Jake, the Council…"

"I think they can make some sort of exception for this, right?" Jake asked. "I'm not a normal dragon—I'm the son of an Ancient. There could be things that I could learn and do and I won't get the chance to because you want to hold me back."

"I am not holding you back, it's just that…"

"It doesn't matter," Jake sighed. "I just wish you'd give him a chance. He's my father. And—I want to get to know him—the real him. I want to get to know Pyrothraxus—my dad."

"You can have that chance when you come home from your duties," said Lao Shi.

"But his knowledge could help in my duties…" Jake protested, bunching his fists up. "Your just jealous because he might know more than you. He finally has one up on you. My father knows things you don't. There could be monsters out there you don't know about, but he does."

"Jake, you will obey your Dragon Master and come with me to the Dragon Council," Lao Shi said more sternly, planting his foot down.

"No," Jake said, crossing his arms. "Not unless my dad goes too."

And with that, Jake Long stormed out the door. Lao Shi grumbled in Chinese and shook his head.

"The kid's adamant," said Fu as he came back in with a cup of tea. "I'll give him credit for that."

Lao Shi hung his head low and sighed, shaking it heavily. He grabbed his truck and dragged it sadly behind him.

"Come on, Fu," he said. "Let's got to the Isle of Draco."

"You're leaving without the kid?" Fu asked.

"Yes," Lao Shi sighed. "Can't have him complain the entire time while we're there."

"Why don't you just let Jonathan go?" Fu asked. "He's right, you know. He's right about a lot of stuff. The guy is an Ancient Dragon—Pyrothraxus the Red. He's 5 thousand years old. You need to let that feud of yours go and listen to him for once. I'd think that you'd be happy that he's actually a dragon."

"You'd think that, wouldn't you?" he asked.

"I get it, you don't like the idea that Jonathan Long knows more about magic than you," the Shar-Pei chuckled.

"It's not that…it's the principle of the thing…" Lao Shi snapped back.

"There was one thing you thought you always had that you knew that he could never share into, wasn't it?" Fu asked. "Magic. You thought he was non-magical, so, he couldn't really be a part of your life, or a part of Susan's life."

"Have you been talking with him?" he asked. "I can't believe this, Fu!"

"Look, the guy has a lot of points," Fu began. "And what do you have? A grudge against him because you disapproved of his marriage to Susan. And at the time you had somewhat of a valid point, but now the tables have turned. That human isn't a human, he's a 5 thousand year old, 200-foot long Chromatic Red Dragon. He remembers things better about the way the world was because he was there. The guy's a living history book. Let him come with you."

Lao Shi shook his head.

"You're afraid he might steal your thunder, huh?" Fu asked. "I know you're afraid that the Council would agree with him and let Jake be taught by his Ancient father. After all—back then, that's who actually did the dragon training. The father. You wanted to train Jake because you wanted to make sure he had the proper training on handling the Dark Dragon, because no one else stood up to him. But now—here comes Jonathan Long, who is the Ancient Dragon Pyrothraxus who actually kicked the guy's butt and tossed him behind a gate a thousand years ago and now you're just not sure if your victory would matter much."

"If he would have stayed at his post, the Dark Dragon wouldn't have escaped," Lao Shi snorted back.

"The guy checked it every night," Fu said. "That's where he goes every night, back to the gate."

"I just don't believe that," Lao Shi sighed.

"You're trying to find more things wrong with him," said Fu. "Now, there's nothing wrong with him. He's magical. It's okay to talk about magic around him. The guy sacrificed his freedom for the gate for a thousand years. Yeah, he left his post and fell in love with Susan, but he still watched it. Just give the guy a break."

"We'll see what the Council says," said Lao Shi. "And if Jake wants to stay here and play boy scouts with his father, then that's up to him."


	7. Time is Running Out

**Time is Running Out **

Pyrothraxus sighed as he settled down on the couch. Lao Shi unsettled him so much that he could not even concentrate on his own thoughts. He just wanted to help Jake, and even help Lao Shi. Though, deep inside of his mind, he heard that voice—the Red Dragon's voice asking him why he needed to prove himself to the Chinese Dragon. He was an Ancient, why would he care about the opinions of his father-in-law?

His head perked up when he heard the sound of the door bell. Pyrothraxus leapt off the couch and shook his frills. His eyes narrowed when he smelled something strange behind the door. Then, he reverted back into his human form and opened it. Standing on the other side was a being cloaked in black. In one hand was a long, crooked scythe and the other held an hour glass with glowing, fiery red sand. The hour glass was shaped like that of a Chromatic Red Dragon—similar to Jonathan in his true form. And Jonathan knew who that was standing beyond that door.

"Hey, Jonathan, long time no see," the cloaked being said. Jonathan stepped back.

"Marty!" he gasped, dashing behind the couch.

"It's time, Jonny," Marty began, coming closer and rising his scythe up. "You can't stay in Twilight forever. You knew I was coming."

Marty grunted and slammed the scythe into the couch, cleaving it in half. Jonathan fell back and reverted back into his dragon form. He ducked his head again, barely missing another swing.

_"Marty!"_ Pyrothraxus cried, ducking another swing. _"Can we talk about this?" _

"There's no talking about it, Jon," Marty called. "You thought you could hide from Death with your little disguise and your act? I'm surprise you can walk in your condition."

_"I still have time,"_ the Red Dragon gasped as he ducked again. Marty swung at him once more, only to have the blade become stuck in the door face. Pyrothraxus snorted_. "Oh, the veneer…Susan's gonna slay me."_

"Not if I slay you first, Crimson Dragon," Marty called, swinging his scythe again. Pyrothraxus aside stepped the slice as the blade broke the dining table in two.

_"Not grandma's dining table…"_ Pyrothraxus sighed. _"Stop wrecking my house, Grim Reaper!" _

"Look, pal," Marty began, sitting down on a chair. He placed the hour glass on the table. "You see that? It's empty, Jonathan. That's it. You're supposed to be dead. It emptied a hundred years ago. I gotta do my job. It's either I reap you or you can take the other road. You can ascend."

_"Ascend?" _Pyrothraxus asked. _"And then what? Be immortal?"_

"Look, I know what happened," Marty said. "It's my job to know these things. 40 years ago, Ithfaedeus got out, and he kicked your butt. And you know why?" He raised the hour glass up and shook it just barely away from the Dragon's nose. "This is why! You don't have another hundred years, you don't even have two seconds. You're gonna turn into a dracolich if you keep doing this—avoiding me—or avoid ascending. I want you to take a good look at your claw right now. The way it really looks."

Jonathan took in a deep breath and raised his claw up, waving his other claw over it to dispel his spell. The claw looked old and wrinkled and gnarled. There were parts of it that looked like it was rotting away, showing bone and flesh underneath it. It was the claw that had his wedding ring. The infection of his flesh seemed to grow up his arm and to his shoulder. Even his right wing looked more tattered than it used to.

"You been hiding that for 40 years," Marty said. "You already started to turn into a dracolich in that cave while guarding the gate. What you look like right now is nothing more than an illusion you cast on yourself. I'll go now, but you got until sundown tonight to make your decision."

_"I can't leave my son and daughter, nor my wife," _Pyrothraxus said as he recast the spell on his claw.

"You'll be even more of a danger to them as a dracolich," said Marty. "Sundown, I'm calling someone to come here. And I'll be there as well. One way or another, I'm gonna have to do my job—or you become immortal. I'm not gonna have a dracolich running around New York. At least the Metallic Dragons accepted their fates when they died. Chromatics…"

He got back up off the chair and placed the hour glass on the table, waving a skeletal hand around the glass. Some sand piled up into the top and slowly began to drop down to the bottle.

"Sundown," Marty said. "Remember that."

Then, he faded away, leaving the hour glass behind. Pyrothraxus growled as he waved his claw over it, turning the hour glass into a simple egg timer. He reverted back into his human form and stuffed the egg timer into his pocket. He heard the door open up and glanced back as Jake came in. Jake noticed the wreck the living room had become.

"Jake!" Jonathan called. "What are you doing here? Shouldn't you be on your way to the Isle of Draco?"

"I didn't want to go," Jake said. "I told Grandpa that if you're not going, then I'm not going. Hey, what happened in here?"

"Jake," Jonathan sighed. "Never mind that. No. You're going. You should be with your grandfather and Fu. This isn't right."

"But I want to stay and be with you," Jake said. "I want to learn about being an Ancient."

"No," he shook his head. "You're not an Ancient. You have some of my traits; you don't have all of them. You should be with Lao Shi."

"Doesn't matter," Jake sighed. "They're probably already there by now."

"Nonsense," Jonathan said. "We'll catch up. I'll have to take you there myself. Now, I'll just leave a note for your mother so she won't worry."

He got out a pen and paper and started to write a note.

"You're coming with me?" Jake asked, a smile appearing on his face.

"Just to send you back to your grandfather," said Jonathan. "And I can't let a 13-year old boy walk around alone—where does your grandfather go to get to the Isle of Draco?"

"Grand Central Station," Jake replied.

"He takes the train?" Jonathan asked.

"Well—how did you get there back then?"

"Fly, of course, Jake," Jonathan replied. "We used our wings. Of course—my wings are much larger and can take me farther."

"But you're the size of an airliner, dad," Jake grinned. "I think people are gonna see you coming"

"I guess you guys built a special train that would take you Younger Dragons to the island," Jonathan shrugged. "Well, come on, son. I hope there's a train waiting for us."

"Uh…" Jake began as his father took him by the hand and went out the door. "Uh, we never took a—train."

"Into the car, son," Jonathan grinned brightly. "Just think, we're taking a trip together. Just you and me."

"Yeah," Jake smiled. "Just you and me."

As the two got into the car, Jonathan started it up, grinning back at Jake again: "Let's sing some road songs on the way to station."

"Aw man…no, dad!" Jake sighed.

"Come on!" Jonathan smiled. "It'll be fun. Oh, here's one. On top of Old Smoky, all covered with snow…"

Jake grumbled and pulled his hood over his head as the car started off.

0

"So, which train do we take?" Jonathan asked, glancing around.

"We don't take a train," replied Jake as he pulled his father through the crowds. They came up upon an elevator with a goblin standing beside it.

"Uh—Jake," began Jonathan. "That's an elevator."

"I know, that's what I said when I first rode it," Jake pushed his father into the elevator car.

"Now, I may have been out of the magical loop for a while, but I don't remember elevators taking dragons to Draco," Jonathan said.

"Please keep your hands and feet inside the car at all times," began the goblin. "And hold onto your butts."

"You better hold onto something, dad," Jake began as he grabbed the railing when the doors closed.

"Hold onto…" Jonathan asked just as the elevator car suddenly dropped at lightning speed through the shaft. He let loose a wail, his body slamming into the ceiling. As soon as the elevator got to its destination, rising up through the ground, the doors opened. Jonathan fell out, landing face down in the dirt while Jake stepped lightly over him.

"Dad!" Jake called, helping his shaking father up. "You alright?"

"Someone get the license off of that griffin?" Jonathan murmured, his head swaying dizzily.

"Man…" Jake sighed. "I just hope Nerk's not here. My dad's an Ancient embarrassment right now. Come on, dad, get on your feet."

He pushed the man up onto his feet and held onto his father just as Jonathan swayed. Jonathan shook his head and straightened out his glasses.

"Huh…what?" he asked. "Where are we?"

"Welcome to the Isle of Draco, dad," Jake said. Jonathan's vision cleared and he glanced around. He saw a volcanic island with a massive ziggurat at the center and six enormous statues of dragons guarding the entrance. Those statues were not of dragons that existed today, but of the Ancient Dragons that used to reside here a thousand years ago. Two statues stood side by side, one he recognized as himself, and the other—the Golden Dragon O'eterus. It placed a smile on his face when he saw the face of O'eterus standing valiantly, with wings half spread. Though, what saddened him was that it was only a statue. But it was a life size statue nevertheless.

"That's you, standing beside that Gold Dragon, right, Dad?" Jake asked.

"That's me," Jonathan nodded, placing his arm around his son. "Jake, it hasn't changed in all these centuries."

"Well, if it isn't little Jakie," began an Australian accented voice. Jake turned around to find Fred Nerk and his gang of young dragons in human form walking up to him. "I thought you chickened out this year."

"Say what?" Jake asked. "I'm no chicken, Nerk. I'll always be here to lay the smack down on your Aussie tail—anywhere—anytime, yo."

"And who's this?" Fred asked, listening to the snickering of his friends behind him. "Your daddy?"

"Actually, I am his father," Jonathan said. "My name is Jonathan Long. But I believe you know me as—that guy over there."

He grinned as he pointed to the life-sized statue of his dragon form to his right. Nerk followed him and his eyes widened when he turned to glance up at the statue.

"Impossible!" Fred called. "They say that the statue will move to another position when the one the statue was made in likeness of returns. I don't see it moving."

They stood for a moment, watching just as they heard the sound of rock crack. The statue of Pyrothraxus began to move, spreading its wings wide and rearing back onto its hind legs, lifting its head up into the sky in a silent roar. Nerk just stood and gawked at it, his eyes shifting from the statue to Jonathan, and then back again.

"No frelling way…" Nerk breathed.

"Hey, Fred," began one of his friends. "That statue moved."

"Jake, I thought your dad was human," Nerk said.

"I did too," Jake shrugged.

"Well, as much as I'd love to stay and chat," Jonathan grinned and winked a fiery-red eye at them. "Jake and I need to find his grandfather and Fu so I can return home in time for some good home cooking. Susan's making chicken pot pie tonight. Come on, son!"

He stuck his hand in his pocket and felt the egg timer inside it and swallowed.

"Smell ya later, Nerk, hah!" Jake laughed.

Though they had waved good-bye, Nerk and the others wanted to follow Jake and Jonathan, hoping to see something interesting that may happen. Jonathan glanced around and spotted Lao Shi with Fu talking to a group of dragons in their human forms wearing robes.

"Hey, Lao Shi!" Jonathan called. "Come on, Jake. Lao Shi!"

"Uh, dad, that's the…" began Jake.

"Jonathan?!" Lao Shi called, nearly jumping up from the shock. "What the devil are you doing here?!"

"Hiya, Jon!" Fu waved. "You look a little windswept."

"Hah!" Jonathan laughed. "Nearly lost my lunch on that elevator ride over here."

"Yeah, the same happens to me too," the Shar Pei nodded. "Hey, kid."

"Fu," Jake smiled. "Uh, hi, grandpa. Dad just dropped me off and…"

"That is the Crimson Dragon?" one of the robed dragons asked.

"Yes, Councilor Andam," Lao Shi sighed. "He's Pyrothraxus."

"Uh," began Jonathan. "Did I just step into something I shouldn't?"

"Welcome, Pyrothraxus of the Four Winds," Councilor Chang began. "Your presence here is honored."

"Thank you," Jonathan swallowed uneasily. He his hand was taken and shook by Councilor Kulde the Norwegian Dragon.

"We have heard many things about you in our old legends," Kulde said. "We thank you for the gift you and O'eterus gave us those centuries ago."

He motioned to the statue of O'eterus standing beside the rearing statue of Pyrothraxus.

"Well, Big O and I were old friends," Jonathan scratched his head. "He got my back many times during the war. I just owed him a few."

"Indeed," Kulde nodded.

"Of course if it wasn't for Sayan'i," began Councilor Omina. "You wouldn't be on our side now."

"Sayan'i?" Jake asked. "Who she, dad?"

"She—um—welll…it's like this, Jake…uh…" Jonathan twittled his fingers.

"She was your dad's old flame centuries ago, Jake," Fu replied. "Legend has it that it was Say who brought your old man out of darkness and into the light."

"She—her—she—we…" Jonathan shook his head, staring back at the statue of the Silver Dragon Sayan'i. For the moment there, his eyes became moist with tears. Then, he lowered to the ground. "If it wasn't for her, I would still be evil, son. My legacy is a dark one, Jake." He glanced back up at his son. "I was just like all other Red Dragons. Killing thrilled me. My—lair was filled with the bones of those who I killed—or who tried to kill me. But then, Sayan'i came. She did more things for me than…I fell in love with her, which is odd because Red Dragons and Silver Dragons were supposed to be enemies. So, for love of her, I betrayed my own brethren—the other Chromatics and fought to repair this world. You won't find any other statues of Chromatic Dragons on this island except for mine—and the Dark Dragon's. But, she left with O'eterus and the others. And I stayed here to guard that gate."

"Which you haven't been doing, Jonathan," said Lao Shi.

"I have my reasons, Lao Shi," Jonathan rose up from the ground, wiping his eyes.

"Which is why we're glad you're here now," said Andam. "We were about to send the Chinese Dragon to go and fetch you. We want answers. The story Lao Shi has told us does not make sense."

"Something tells me you're leaving something out, Jonathan," Lao Shi said. "I want to know what that is. Or are we too 'human' to understand?"

Jonathan lowered his head and gripped the egg timer in his coat pocket.

"Dad?" Jake asked. "He shouldn't be in trouble, yo! He's not a criminal."

"What do you want to know?" Jonathan asked, his tone becoming serious.

"The Dark Dragon," said Kulde. "When he escaped the gate. Was it before or after you left your post, Pyrothraxus?"

"It was—before," Jonathan replied. "I—left to find him. He over took me."

"What?" Jake asked. "I thought it was because you were bored."

"I told you I left out the gory details, Jake," Jonathan sighed.

"How can he over take you?" Chang asked. "You're a Chromatic Red. He was just a Black. You're three times as powerful as he was and as large."

"I think I know why," Omina began, holding up a magical crystal to Jonathan. "I've sensed it since I saw him. For one, he wasn't an Ascendant like O'eterus and Sayan'i were. And another…" she saw her crystal glow red, pulsating. "He's in Twilight!"

"What?!" Lao Shi cried. "Jonathan!"

Jonathan shut his eyes tightly and clenched his fists. Tears streamed down his eyes.

"Death follows you, doesn't he?" Omina asked.

"What's Twilight?" Jake asked. "Dad? What's Twilight?"

"An—Ancient Dragon's death," he replied. "I'm feeling the weight of my age coming down upon me now."

"The Sands of your life have already run out, haven't they?" Omina asked.

"They—ran out 100 years ago," Jonathan replied. "I've been using my magical energies to keep me alive—but they're backfiring on me."

Andam reached down and took Jonathan's hand. He waved his own hand over it and watched as Jonathan's hand became a Red Dragon's claw. But it was not normal, it was twisted and gnarled—and parts of it was rotting away.

"He's turning into a dracolich," he said. "If he doesn't die now, he'll become one."

"Die?" Jake asked. "Wait a minute! You can't die, dad…"

"I have no plans to do so," Jonathan growled.

"Then you would doom yourself to a heartless life of a lich," Andam snorted. "Only Chromatic Dragons become dracoliches if they refuse to die or ascend. But it's a long and painful process. And in the end, their dark magic consumes them until their nothing more but rotting flesh and bones animated by a tormented soul who wants nothing more than for the world to feel the darkness of its heart. He would stop being the father and son-in-law you all knew. As a dracolich, he could even kill you."

"You're becoming undead?" Jake asked. "Ew…"

"Son…" Jonathan shook his head. "That's why I wanted to give my knowledge to him. So, I could die with some peace of mind that my son would know what to do if something like this were to happen. If they got out."

"That's why you married my daughter?" Lao Shi asked. "Because you wanted someone to pass on your knowledge?"

"I also wanted to know love and laughter, to see what it meant to be human," Jonathan said. "So, I would know what it was I was protecting back then. It was my dying wish. But I felt the need to take care of Jake and Haley, I couldn't just leave Susan with the kids and go to my lair to die! O'eterus knew that if I didn't ascend that I would die at my post. Because of my stubbornness, he said to me. Immortality is the most arrogant thing my kind has ever done."

"What you're doing to yourself is arrogant," said Kulde.

"I agree," said Chang.

Jake glanced down at the rotting claw of his father, shaking his head. Then, he pushed himself passed the crowd, changing into his dragon form and flew off.

"Jake!" Jonathan called. He glanced down and waved his hand over his claw and applied the illusion again. His claw looked healthy once more. He stepped back from the crowd and flames spiraled around his body. His form grew out, his size shifting. Soon, the enormous, 200-foot form of Pyrothraxus stood where Jonathan once was. _"Jacob Luke Long, come back here right now!"_

"Let him go," Andam called.

Lao Shi scanned the immense form of his son-in-law: "That's not what you really look like is it?"

_"No, the—infection has grown up my left foreleg and out to my left wing," _he replied.

Lao Shi glanced down and saw the egg timer lying on the ground. He picked it up and handed it to Andam. Andam waved his hand over it and removed the illusion, watching the egg timer grow back to the hour glass.

"What's this?" he asked Pyrothraxus.

_"A gift from Marty,"_ the Red Dragon replied, as he waved his claw over his left shoulder. He revealed the damage that had been done. The arm and wing looked almost rotted away, bone showing with streams of tendons and muscle still attached. The left wing's membrane was tattered completely, barely clinging onto the digits. Fred Nerk just blinked. He felt like he was going to be sick from seeing the dragon's near skeletal left arm and wing. He could even see parts of the rib cage as he noticed that the infection spread itself down Pyrothraxus' left flank.

"That's Marty's handiwork, alright," said Fu, inspecting the hourglass. "He knew you were a dragon all this time?"

_"Yes,"_ Pyrothraxus replied. _"He knew. He—was the only magical creature in this world that knew." _

"Aiya," Lao Shi breathed as he looked at the skeletal arm and wing. "Tian a…"

"How have you been fighting death?" Councilor Kukulkhan asked.

_"By not sleeping,"_ Pyrothraxus asked. _"If I sleep, my soul has more of a potential of leaving my body. So, I don't sleep. I just pretend to sleep." _

"Jonathan!" Lao Shi cried. "Gaoyang zhong de guyang! Ascend. Just go through with it."

Pyrothraxus glanced up and saw that the sun was setting over the horizon. He sighed and parted himself from the crowd.

_"Excuse me,"_ he said as he slowly walked away, his wings drooping and his tail dragging. _"I'm gonna go find my son."_

As he walked away, Fu noticed the hour glass: "Hey, the sand ran out. If Jon's sand had already run out a hundred years ago, why are they running out now?"

"That sand represents how long he has before death takes him tonight," said Omina. "If he refuses death—then he's a dracolich."

"Can't find anything wrong with him, huh?" Lao Shi asked Fu. "I think I found another thing wrong with my son-in-law. He's becoming a dracolich."

0

_"Jake!"_ Pyrothraxus called, gasping for air as he struggled to walk. _"Jake!"_

He dare not fly now, fearing that he would loose consciousness and fall from the sky in his condition. He staggered forward, swinging his head around on his long neck, his keen eyes picking up movement in the shadow. Night and darkness mattered not to him for he could see even in pitch black. Though, he could only see color in the day. Even without the aid of color with the growing of night, Pyrothraxus would know Jake's form anywhere.

He found himself coming upon a small lake in a meadow and he limped towards it. He knelt down and looked upon his reflection. The Red Dragon saw that the infection was growing up around his neck now. He was loosing the color of his purple frills.

_"I'm sorry, Jake,"_ he sighed as he laid his head down at the bank.

"Well, you gonna accept your fate now, Chromatic Dragon?" began a voice behind him. "Or are we just gonna let this infection continue until you're a dracolich? Or are you choosing the other road?"

_"Marty…"_ Pyrothraxus panted. _"I'm so tired, Marty. I'm sad and I'm tired." _

"Tired, eh?" Marty asked. "Good. That's good." He raised his scythe up. "I'm glad you finally decided to die, Pyro. It's time for you to sleep for eternity."

"No!" cried a voice from behind a rock. "Stop! Don't kill my father!"

Jake leapt out behind the rock and flew towards the two, coming between Marty and his father. He leaned back against Pyrothraxus' snout, holding his claws out, ready to attack the Grim Reaper.

"Don't even come near him," he growled at Marty.

"Kid…" Marty sighed. "I have to reap him. Look at him! He's half dead now. His body is rotting because the sands of its life have run out. And just like anything that's dead, it'll rot. Look at him, kid. Just look at him! Does he look alive to you?"

Pyrothraxus just blinked, his breath becoming labored. Jake saw the skeletal parts of him, the skin barely clinging onto the bone.

"I have to reap him," Marty pressed on. "It's not a fun job. It's not a great job, but it's my job. These are the conditions, your dad ascends and becomes immortal, or he is reaped. You dad chose not to ascend, but he's clinging onto a life he doesn't have anymore. He has to die."

_"I'm so tired, Jake,"_ the Red Dragon's eyes slowly began to close.

"How did you stay alive when you were beaten nearly to death by the Dark Dragon, dad?" Jake asked. "Back in Florida?"

_"Because of you,"_ Pyrothraxus replied. _"It was all because of you and Susan and Haley." _

"And I was on vacation that day," Marty chuckled. "But I gotta do it now. Jon, time to rest."

_"Where—is the visitor?"_ Pyrothraxus asked. _"The one who was supposed to—come?" _

"She didn't show," Marty shrugged. "And besides, you don't want to ascend. So, just sleep, already."

"No!" Jake cried.

_"Avo garo…" _began a sultry voice. Pyrothraxus glanced up and saw a bright blinding light growing out from the west. As the light faded, to a glow around the form, the figure smiled at him. It was an Ancient, a Great Wyrm covered in glistening silver scales. Jake breathed heavily. Never in his life had he beheld something so beautiful. The scales looked like little mirrors that captured the light of the full moon on their surfaces. A neck frill of silver and light blue ran down the length of the dragon's body and to its tail. Wings similar to Pyrothraxus' folded at its sides.

_"Le suilannon," _the Silver Dragon said. _"Lû ann gwannant, Pyrothraxus." _

_"Rhau vain palan-híla lîn," _Pyrothraxus dipped his head to the Silver. _"Sayan'i, Shield Dragon." _

"Sayan'i?" Jake asked. "That's her? Why is she here?"

_"To save him before his magic consumes him,"_ she said balefully. _"As I have saved him from the darkness that bounded him to his deeds. You know I won't let you go to the River Styx that easily, Pyrothraxus." _

_"I—have not the strength to ascend now,"_ Pyrothraxus said. _"Only the strength to die." _

_"And leave your family?"_ the Silver Dragon asked. _"What a coward you are." _

_"Sayan'i,"_ Pyrothraxus sighed.

_"Don't leave him,"_ Sayan'i said, pointing at Jake. _"Nor the love that you have given to another—the one that I gave to you." _

She knelt down and lifted him up onto his feet with little effort. Sayan'i leaned down and nuzzled her snout under Pyrothraxus' neck. She took his left claw into her hand and stared sorrowfully at the bones that were exposed.

_"How can you fight the big fight when you're dead?"_ she asked him. _"Or a half-wit dracolich? You think I'll let you become that? You think O'eterus will let you? What good are you to protect them against your horrible brother if you're dead? You think your son can defeat Zestos?" _

_"He can have your help,"_ Pyrothraxus said.

The Silver Dragon dropped his claw and glanced away: _"We've moved on from this world long ago. We have left it to its fate." _

_"What kind of fate is that?"_ Pyrothraxus asked, his voice began to crack and wheeze. _"No, Sayan'i. That is why I've chosen the coward's way out. Because I have no one to call to. Nothing. I have only death now. The same for all." _

_"If you had us, would you ascend?"_ she asked. _"If I bring O'eterus down here, would you ascend now?" _

_"Yes,"_ he replied. _"Knowing I had company in the loneliness of immortality." _

_"Then, you have him,"_ Sayan'i said.

_"I don't see him,"_ Pyrothraxus growled.

_"Wux 'dirth bensvelk,"_ growled another voice from behind. _"Dost darastrix."_

Pyrothraxus just chuckled after that.

"Dad?" Jake asked as he glanced back, seeing a Gold Dragon walk towards the group.

_"That's O'eterus,"_ he nodded.

"Wonderful," Marty sighed. "The whole gang's here. Okay, am I gonna reap this dragon or not?"

_"You will do no such thing, Martin," _O'eterus said. _"He's not yours."_

"Hey, only my mom calls me Martin," Marty snorted, crossing his arms.

_"Galen Garath,"_ Pyrothraxus chuckled. _"It's been long."_

_"Well, been too long, I see,"_ said O'eterus. _"The worms are setting in, Pyro. No one's called me Galen for years." _

_"Come to see me off?" _

_"Nope, I've come to smack you in the head and knock some sense into you," _Galen growled, shaking his golden mane. _"A dracolich. I thought we were pals." _

_"I'm not the one who left,"_ Pyrothraxus growled.

_"I'm sorry I did,"_ he sighed, placing his claw on Pyrothraxus' face and inspecting the damage to it. "_You need help. You need it more than I did. Lay down." _

_"I'm fine…" _Pyrothraxus protested.

_"You heard me,"_ Galen snorted as he pushed the Red Dragon down onto his back.

"Dad!" Jake called. "I thought you were his friend!"

_"I am,"_ said Galen. _"But for this situation, it's best for him to be on his back. We brought your hoard here, Pyro. And we're gonna shove it all down your throat." _

"Ah, I get it," said Marty. "That's why he didn't ascend. He didn't want to eat his hoard. Greedy lizard."

"Eat his hoard?" Jake asked.

_"That's how the dragon ascends,"_ O'eterus said. _"That's how a dragon dies anyways. They eat their hoards while in Twilight and just die after that. But if they will it after they have consumed every last brass coin, they can ascend and become immortal and have access to powers beyond this world. His brother intends to do that." _

_"How did you get passed my guards in my lair, Galen?"_ Pyrothraxus asked when he saw his entire hoard manifest itself at Sayan'i's command. Jake's jaw just dropped when he saw mounds and mounds of gold and jewels appear from nowhere. The hoard was enormous.

"That's it?" he asked. "That's the hoard?"

_"Every last bit of pearl and diamond," _said Sayan'i. _"Quite a hoard, Pyro." _

_"You can't expect me to guzzle all of that in a short time!"_ Pyrothraxus protested. _"I'll explode!"_

_"You pack rat!"_ Galen called. _"You shouldn't have collected so much. My hoard wasn't this big when I ate it. No matter, we can fix that." _

"You guys better hurry," said Marty, noticing that the infection was growing worse on Pyrothraxus' body. "Soon, he'll be un-reapable. He'll be a dracolich by morning."

O'eterus chuckled as he snapped his fingers. The hoard disappeared. Pyrothraxus just looked at the vacant spot with tears in his eyes. In Galen's claws was a golden pill.

_"Open your mouth, Jonathan,"_ he said as he leaned down and held up Pyrothraxus' head.

_"What's that?" _

_"It's your hoard in pill form,"_ said Galen_. "Open your mouth." _

_"What, no water?"_ Pyrothraxus asked.

_"Quit stalling, you old reptile!"_ Galen called as he pried Pyrothraxus' jaws open. He shoved the pill down the Red Dragon's throat and then snapped them shut, holding them together with his claws. _"Swallow it!"_

"Dad, just do it," Jake said.

Pyrothraxus shut his eyes tightly as he swallowed the hoard down his throat. He gripped the grass with his claws as he felt his belly fill quickly with the mounds of gold that he once had as a hoard. His belly looked swollen for a moment. Pyrothraxus' head fell limp and his grip relaxed.

_"Come on, Pyro,"_ O'eterus said. _"Now, it's all up to you. Just will it to happen. Allow yourself to come close to death." _

Marty took his queue and raised the scythe up towards the Red Dragon's neck. Jake moved out to stop him from cutting his father's head off, but Sayan'i's claw came down and grabbed his wings. She picked the fighting, smaller dragon, up and held onto him tightly.

"Let me go!" he cried.

_"Don't interfere,"_ she commanded. _"This is something you cannot understand." _

Marty swung his scythe down, seeing the blade pass through the Dragon's neck. But nothing else happened after that. The Dragon's soul did not pass to the Beyond, and there was no cut mark. Suddenly, Pyrothraxus' body began to heal quickly, the rotting flesh began to mend itself on command.

_"That's it,"_ O'eterus said. _"That's it, Jon."_

Jake's eyes just widened even more when he saw his father's body began to glow with a golden aura, an aura similar to O'eterus'. All the age and chinks, and scars that was on Pyrothraxus' body soon disappeared. When his body was whole again, Pyrothraxus grabbed hold of Marty's scythe in his claw. With one clinch, he snapped it in two. He opened his eyes and looked up at Sayan'i.

_"Le hannon," _he whispered to her.

_"Sa 'ell nîn," _she replied back.

_"Can you put down my kid?"_ Pyrothraxus asked. Sayan'i laughed as she lowered Jake to the ground. Jake reverted into his human form and ran for his father's head, hugging it as best as he could.

"I was so worried," Jake wept.

"_I'm alright now,"_ he said.

_"Iôn vuin…" _Sayan'i whispered. _"You should be proud." _

_"Ist nîn be nau lîn," _Pyrothraxus nodded as he lifted off the ground.

_"Call us when you need us,"_ Galen said. _"You know how. Farewell."_

_"Nan lû govaded vîn," _Sayan'i dipped her head as she and O'eterus vanished.

_"Ir i lû telitha," _Pyrothraxus said. _"Mell nín." _

"Well, the sun's up," said Marty as he glanced back at the rising sun in the east. "Guess I'll—catch you later, Jon. Golf on Friday?"

_"Sure,"_ Pyrothraxus replied. _"I'll bring the clubs."_

"And I'll bring the balls," Marty laughed. "Hah! Later."

Then, he vanished into shadow, leaving Pyrothraxus alone with Jake. Pyrothraxus laid down on his belly and leaned down to nuzzle his snout against Jake.

"Hey, come on, pops," Jake laughed when he felt his father's hot breath snort out of his nostrils. "This is embarrassing. Someone could be watching."

"Hey!" called a familiar Australian accented voice. "They're over here!"

"Oh, great, Nerk," Jake sighed. "Dad! Give a kid some space, yo."

_"Sorry,"_ Pyrothraxus said as he reverted into his human form. "Didn't mean to be—how you say—all up in your grill?"

The yellow and orange striped Younger Dragon that was Nerk landed along with the others. Jonathan glanced up to see Lao Shi carrying Fu in his arms as he flew over. The blue eastern dragon just stared at Jonathan and Jake, not sure what to make out what he saw. Jonathan was not a dracolich.

"Hey, Lao Shi," said Jonathan. "Up early, huh? That's the ole Cougar Scout spirit. The early bird catches the worm. Right, son?"

"Right, dad!" Jake said, seeing a wink from his father. "Dad was just showing me some Cougar Scout survival training."

"That and some other things," Jonathan chuckled.

"Show me how to make fire by rubbing two sticks together again, dad," Jake grinned at his father.

"Hah!" Jonathan laughed. "That reminds me of one time when I was just a young dragon and I tried to rub two trees together. It was all because I saw these two humans do it and I wanted to know what they were hoping to make when they did it. Set the whole gosh darn forest on fire, that's what happened! Had to use my wind magic to put it out."

"Would someone tell me what's going on here?!" Lao Shi bellowed, stamping his foot down and thrashing his tail about in frustration.

"Yeah," said Fu. "And why's the hour glass like full to the brim with sand? It looks like it's about to bust open."

"But you notice something, Fu?" Jonathan asked, with a cheery tone. "It's not the sand of my life that's it's full of."

He took it and slammed it into the ground, breaking the hour glass and watched the sand spill out. And then, he fell, coughing and gagging, rolling on the ground, acting like he was dying.

"Dad!" Jake cried. "What did you do?"

Jonathan stopped coughing and laughed again: "Fooled you!"

"He's ascended," Kulde smiled.

"He did what?" Lao Shi asked.

"He ascended," said Omina. "Looks like we don't have to worry about dracoliches after all."

Jonathan grabbed his stomach when he felt it growl at him: "Oh, boy. Does someone have some Pepto-Bismol? I think I ate too much."

He hiccupped and a single gold coin flew out of his mouth. Jonathan knelt down and picked it up, placing it into Jake's hand.

"Well, there's what's left of your college fund, son," he said. "Don't spend it all in one place."

"Aw man, dad, you ate my college fund?" Jake asked.

"It was a part of my hoard, son," Jonathan said. "And I had to eat every penny."

"Dad…" Jake sighed as he glanced back at his father. But his father had disappeared. He felt the wind rise around him and he glanced up, seeing an enormous Red Dragon fly off into the billowy, golden clouds above.

"Where's he going?" Nerk asked.

"He's probably going to check up on the gate," said Fu. "See, Lao Shi? I told you he checks up on it."

"Probably hoping to see that mom doesn't find the living room in a wreck from last night," said Jake.

"What happened last night?" Lao Shi asked.

"Marty came to visit," said Jake.

"Susan's gonna kill him," Fu chuckled. "Let me see that coin, Jake."

He glanced down at the coil and smiled, looking up at Lao Shi.

"Hey, look, Beijing, 12th century," he said. "Not a bad coin. I didn't know ole Pyrothraxus was in Beijing in the 12th century. You could get a good price off of this coin if you can find the right market. Maybe even pay for a good school."

"Really?" Jake asked. "Sweet." He glanced back up at the clouds again. "Thanks, dad."


	8. Did I Tarrasque You Something

**Did I Tarrasque You Something? **

"What are we going to do about Pyrothraxus, Master?" Chang asked as she slowly approached Ithfaedeus deep in the sewers of New York. "He has ascended."

_"I was hoping he'd turn himself into a dracolich,"_ the Dark Dragon growled. _"I had a spell all set to control him with. Dracoliches loose most of their minds when they transform and have neither a will nor a way when they attack. So much for that plan. But no matter, my servant, I have another plan." _

The black, skeletal-looking, horned head leaned down to her. Acid dripped from the Black Dragon's jaws. Chang stepped back, avoiding a splash of the acid as it made contact with the water they stood in.

_"There is an ancient creature so powerful that it can take on even a dragon like Jonathan Long,"_ Ithfaedeus hissed, his enormous tail slapping against the concrete wall.

"What is this creature, Master?" Chang asked. "There is nothing in this world as big as the Crimson Dragon. Not even you. And now, you cannot hope to defeat him."

_"Silence,"_ the Dark Dragon hissed deeply, his voice trembling the sewers, sending loose concrete splashing from the ceiling above. _"Pyrothraxus has a phobia. There is one creature out there that will send him running like a whimpering wyrmling. A creature created by dark magic. I shall summon this creature and set it on the city. And Pyrothraxus will have to come and face it." _

"A fight on that scale will alert the non-magical humans," said Chang. "It will be on the news."

Ithfaedeus growled, rattling his wings_: "Do you think I care what those sheep think?" _

"No, Master…" Chang sighed. "But…"

_"Come, my servant,"_ Ithfaedeus hissed as his form reverted into the smaller, purple-maned version that the Younger Dragons know.

"What about the American Dragon?" Chang asked.

_"The American Dragon is not powerful enough to handle this creature,"_ he said. _"It'll kill him. Perhaps we'll be rid of both if both face it together." _

0

"What the heck kind of assignment is this?" Trixie asked as she stared down at the paper. "Man, Mr. Rotwood must be trippin'. He says to get photographs of sugar sprites when this is clearly a drawing of a forest nymph."

"Professor Rotwood still can't tell the difference," Spud shrugged. "So, just find a forest nymph and take a picture of it and label it a sugar sprite."

"Hey, yeah, I guess we can do that," she grinned. They turned the corner only to find an enormous black dragon in the middle of the street, chanting. Trixie and Spud ducked behind a trash dumpster and peaked over the top.

"Spud!" Trixie hissed. "It's the Dark Dragon! What's he doin' back here?"

"Getting a hotdog?" Spud asked, which caused Trixie to slap him on the shoulder. "Ow!"

"Quiet!" she snapped. "Man, this don't look good. Look, Councilor Chang's with him too. Man, I thought they put her behind bars for good."

"We gotta warn Jake and Gramps!" Spud whispered.

"Wait a minute," Trixie hissed. "What's he doing?"

When the spell the Dark Dragon cast was finished, a dark portal opened up in front of him.

_"Come, come!"_ the Dark Dragon beckoned, stepping back as a reptilian creature 5 times larger than him stepped through the portal. It stood like a theropod dinosaur, with its back parallel to the ground and its tail keeping it balanced, walking on the balls of its feet. On its back was a carapace with spines all over it.

"Man, that thing looks like Godzilla," said Spud.

The monster reared back and roared. Then, it snorted and spat out a ball of fire from its mouth. The flaming ball shot and collided with a sky scraper, sending it crumbling.

"It is Godzilla!" Trixie called. "Come on, we need to find Jake and Gramps!"

"I don't think Jake's ever fought something that big before," said Spud.

"Spud, he's the only one that can fight it!" Trixie called as they darted down the street. "Maybe Fu has a growth potion."

Ithfaedeus watched as the monster walked through the city, stepping on vehicles and crashing through buildings, or setting them on fire.

"That's a…that's a…" Chang trembled.

_"Yes, it is, isn't it?"_ the Dark Dragon chuckled. _"And the only way to kill it is to wish it dead." _

"Pyrothraxus can't hope to defeat a monster like that!"

_"I know,"_ he laughed, rubbing his claws together. _"I know." _

0

The two came busting into the simple electronics store, calling out for Jake and Lao Shi, but they were not to be found. Fu came running out at the sound of their voices.

"What happened, kids?" Fu Dog asked. "You look as if you saw a really big ghost."

"Not a ghost, Fu!" called Trixie, gasping for breath. "A really big—monster."

"Godzilla!" Spud cried.

"Godzilla?" Fu asked. "There's no such thing. He's just a movie."

"We did see him," Trixie said. "The Dark Dragon summoned him from a portal."

"The Dark Dragon?" Fu asked.

Then, another came bursting into the store. Trixie, Fu, and Spud turned to see Jake's father, Jonathan Long, out of breath from the running.

"Fu!" he cried. "Fu! You gotta help me."

"Jonathan!" Fu cried. "What's the matter, what happened?"

"There's a brownie stuck in my sink drain pipe!" he cried, falling over after that and laughing hysterically. "I never had a brownie stuck in my drain pipe. He's cussing and swearing—and Susan…she's freaking out. You must have a potion that can undo it. Get him out of my pipe."

"Mr. Long!" Trixie cried. "You—you know about Fu?"

"Know about him?" Jonathan asked. "He shrank me once. What are you kids doing here?"

"Jonathan, maybe you can tell me what they saw," said Fu. "You've been around long enough. I don't know what these kids are so hysterical about. They said they saw Godzilla."

"Godzilla?" Jonathan asked, leaning down to the Shar-Pei. "They didn't see me fly around, did they?"

"No," Fu replied. "Kids, tell Jonathan exactly what you saw. You said the Dark Dragon summoned him?"

"Ithfaedeus is back in town?" Jonathan asked.

"Ithfaedeus?" Trixie asked.

"That's the Dark Dragon's real name," Jonathan replied. "Ithfaedeus the Black—Dragon of Sound and Darkness. Are you sure it wasn't one of his illusions?"

"Tell that to the hotel that monster just blew up!" Spud cried.

"How big was it?" Jonathan asked.

"It was taller than most of the buildings around it," said Trixie. "Almost 100 feet tall. And it had a spiny looking shell on its back, but it stood and walked like a T-rex. And it breathed fire."

"Stood and walked like a T-rex…" Jonathan breathed.

"Just tell us one thing, how long did you know about Jake being a dragon?" Trixie asked.

"Since I married his mother," Jonathan chuckled. Then his eyes lit up and his lip trembled. "No—he didn't."

"Did what?" Fu asked.

"Ithfaedeus released the…" Jonathan gulped for a moment. "The Tarrasque."

"Eep!" Fu yelped. "Not the Tarrasque! Ah—jeez…I can't believe that thing's been summoned."

"Fu!" Jonathan cried. "What are we gonna do?"

"What are we…Jake can't handle the Tarrasque!" Fu cried. "It's too powerful, too big. He'd be squished like a bug. Not even Gramps can handle something that huge. Looks like this is more an Ancient task to handle, if you know what I mean."

"Fu!" he screamed. "I can't handle a Tarrasque! That thing can't be killed.

Not even I could kill it. It takes a wish to do it. We have to wish it dead."

"Hey, if you have a genie in a bottle, be my guest," shrugged Fu.

"Someone tell me what's going on?!" Trixie asked. "What is a Tarrasque? And what do you mean it can't be killed?"

"This is your department, Pyrothraxus," Fu shrugged.

"The Tarrasque…" began Jonathan. "And there's only one, is a magical creature created somewhere around 4500 years ago. It was created by a wizard with an ego the size of Montana. And he thought he could control it. But he made it too big and too powerful to control. So, it killed its creator and went on a rampage. Then, some time around the 9th century, another wizard found an ancient banishing spell that banished the Tarrasque to another dimension. And it was never seen again. But then—in 1954, a wizard in Japan got really mad at the Japanese stock market and summoned the Tarrasque in downtown Tokyo."

"They named the Tarrasque Gojira," said Fu. "But another wizard managed to banish it again. But the monster was such a hit, they made a string of movies about the attack and that's why we have Godzilla movies."

"So, Godzilla does exist," Spud grinned. "Cool."

"Technically," Jonathan replied. "But Godzilla isn't a radioactive, mutant dinosaur created by bomb tests—it was created as a pet by an idiotic wizard. The wizard was going to use the Tarrasque to conquer the world. It backfired on him."

"So—how do you know about the Tarrasque?" Trixie asked. "How do you know about any of this stuff? You're not supposed to know about the magical world."

"Yeah, and where's Jake and Gramps?" asked Spud. "Shouldn't they be here?"

"Jake and Lao Shi can't handle the Tarrasque," said Fu. "Besides, they're off investigating an ogre heist in Staten Island. But we've got Jonathan here."

"Me?" Jonathan asked. "I—can't…but…no…I can't…"

"You're the only thing big enough that can, Jon," Fu said.

"Fu, I've got a confession," he began. "I've got a Tarrasque-phobia."

"What?!" Fu asked. "You? Give me a break."

"Can someone tell us what's going on?" asked Trixie. "What do you mean that he's the only one that can beat the Tarrasque?"

"You mean to tell me that Jake never told you two about who and what his father really is?" Jonathan asked.

"Told us about what?" Spud asked.

"I'm a dragon," Jonathan replied.

"You?!" Trixie asked, breaking down into laughter.

"It's true, kids," said Fu. "He's a dragon."

Trixie and Spud glanced at each other and then back at Jonathan.

"But I thought—we thought it was only Jake's mom that Jake got his powers from," said Trixie.

"Yeah—even if she can't turn into a dragon," said Spud.

"He got it from both of us," Jonathan replied. "My name isn't Jonathan Long—my real name is Pyrothraxus, Dragon of the Four Winds. I command the elements of fire and air."

"He's a 200-foot long, 640-ton Chromatic Red Dragon," said Fu. "He's stands around 45 feet to his shoulder with nearly a 50-foot long neck. He's got a neck of a swan, a body of a lion, crushing jaws of a crocodile, and a thrashing tail of a snake—with wings of a bat. He is—what the stories you have heard about when you hear the world 'dragon'. Dragon slayers claiming to fight dragons larger than barns, able to swallow a whole herd of cattle. Now, the dragons of today aren't that big—and have often lead you all to believe those tales were nothing more than someone's ego getting too big. One thing—dragons like Jon haven't been seen on this planet for a thousand years. They all disappeared except for him—and the Dark Dragon."

"The Dark Dragon is one of my kind—a part of the Ancient Dragon race," said Jonathan. "The form you all know is a disguise he wears. He really looks like this."

He brought out a book that Fu once showed Jake those weeks ago when he saw Pyrothraxus for the first time. Trixie and Spud flipped through it, seeing just how big the dragons used to be.

"So, why ain't dragons that big now?" Trixie asked.

"That's a story I'll tell some other time—after—dealing with the…" Jonathan felt woozy in the legs and fell over, holding his head. "I don't think I can do it…"

"Ah-jeez…" Fu sighed. "Look, if you go handle the Tarrasque, I'll help you with your bownie problem."

"Fu…"

"Jonathan, just go do it," Fu said. "Or would you want me to call the kid over here and he handles the Tarrasque."

"No!" Jonathan bellowed. "Jake will be killed if he tried to handle a monster like that. Alright—I'll…deal with the Tarrasque. But—he can't be killed. And we don't have a genie or a wish. The only way we get rid of the Tarrasque to banish him. And—I don't know the spell to do it."

"Well, it just so happens that I have that spell right here," Fu grinned as he pulled a chair over to his library. He began to thumb through the stash of scrolls that he had stuffed tightly in a bookshelf.

"You have a banishing spell for a Tarrasque?" Jonathan asked. "Fu, where did you…how?"

"Well, after the 1954 incident, I felt it was high time that I be prepared for such an occasion," replied Fu. "And—I won it off of the guy who banished the Tarrasque in Tokyo. Hah!"

"Fu!" he laughed. "You are somethin' else!"

"The only problem is, I don't have enough magical energy to cast it," said Fu. "But you do—O Pyrothraxus of the Four Winds. You're just perfect to cast the spell—you or the Wizard Pandarus one has the power to cast this spell. Luckily—I've got you."

"Yeah," said Spud. "It'll be hard to ask Pandarus. He might try to use Godzilla."

"He's a Tarrasque, Spud," said Trixie.

"Godzilla," Spud grinned.

"One problem," said Jonathan. "I'm gonna be out there getting my tail handed to me. I can't memorize this spell in time. I need someone to be out there to call the spell out to me so I can cast it."

"Don't ask me!" Fu protested as he pulled out the scroll. "I'm too chicken to go out there. So—ask the kids to do it."

"It takes someone with magical powers to read a magic scroll," said Jonathan. "Though—these kids know about magic—they aren't magical. They won't be able to read it to me."

"Spud has magic powers," said Fu.

"Spud?" Trixie glanced back at Spud.

"Me?" Spud asked.

"Arthur?" Jonathan asked.

"Jake told me that Spud was able to use Pandarus' wands against the wizard once," said Fu. "And if I'm right—only someone with magical powers can use a magic wand."

"You're right," said Jonathan, taking the scroll. "Arthur—read this scroll."

"Gethrisj osvith arisauriv nar vexen nox," Spud said. "Hey, I read it!"

And Jonathan laughed heartily, slapping his knee: "He is a wizard!"

"Told yah!" Fu called.

Trixie glanced down at the spell, trying to read it as well. But to her, it looked like a foreign language she could not decipher.

"Looks like Greek to me," she said.

"Actually, that's Draconic," Jonathan said. "The language of magic is in fact the language of the Ancient Dragons. We were the ones who taught the 'younger races' like elves, dwarves, humans…and the like how to use magic. Magic originated from dragons like me."

"But—not dragons like Jake," Trixie glanced up at him.

"They are a completely different breed of dragon," he said. "A breed I and my friend Galen created to protect the world while we were gone. We created them from humans like you. Not from elves, not from ogres—or dwarves—but from humans. Humans all over the world. We wanted to make sure that they would remember how important it was to protect this world—because they were connected to those they protected. We tried to keep them from being as aloof as my kind turned out to be—which lead to this world's near destruction. But I'll tell you two about that later. Arthur, you're a wizard and you can read that scroll out to me so I can cast it."

"Cool," Spud grinned. "Super Gramps would be proud…"

"Remember you promise, Fu," said Jonathan.

"Oh!" Fu called. "You'll have to wear the Tarrasque down in order to cast that spell on it. You'll need to weaken it. I suggest _Disintegration_. It won't kill him, but it'll weaken him."

"Luckily, I know _Disintegration_," Jonathan nodded. "But that spell is very costly on my magical energies. I can only cast it four times a day."

"Shouldn't the fact that you're a Dragon Ascendant help with that?" Fu asked.

"Still takes 8 hours to replenish," said Jonathan. "Just because I'm immortal, doesn't mean I don't need to rest my cache once a day."

"Well, four shots should do it," he said. "Good luck."

"Oh boy…" Jonathan shook his head as he lead Trixie and Spud outside. "Am I ever gonna need it. Come on, kids."

The three glanced around for a moment. Trixie and Spud noticed that Jonathan's car was not there. Jonathan sighed for a moment as a bit of steam escaped from his mouth—signaling it was starting to get colder.

"Hey, where's your car, Mr. Long?" Trixie asked.

"Oh, I flew here," he replied. "Well, no one's coming down from this direction, and no one from this direction. Wait here, kids. I need room. And—brace yourself. I can be a bit scary in my true form."

"Hey," Trixie laughed. "We're used to seeing dragons."

"Yeah," said Spud. "It's nothing—we see Jake a lot in his dragon form."

"Not dragons like me, kids," Jonathan rumbled somberly. "Don't say I didn't warn you. Now what does Jake say? 'Dragon up'?"

He stood back from them and leaned down onto his hands and knees. Then, the wind picked up around him and fire began to fluctuate around his body. The fire spread out to consume Jonathan's body, spreading up like a pillar into the sky. Trixie and Spud just stood with wide eyes as they watched two fiery, enormous red claws step out from the flames as two enormous wings spread wide. A single tail lashed out and smashed into the buildings lining the street.

"Holy!" Trixie cried.

Then, a horned head with jaws that could swallow both of them whole pushed through the flames and opened its fiery eyes. As the flames dissipated, the colossal body of the Chromatic Red Dragon was revealed. Muscles coiled and bulged in the forelegs and hind legs when the Red Dragon slowly picked up his feet to walk towards them. They saw just how heavy the dragon was, seeing the potholes he left when one foot left the pavement. They could hear a deep thrum rumble through the dragon's throat as it lowered its massive head to them. The jaws parted and Trixie and Spud could see the Red Dragons long saber-like four canine fangs followed by the short oval shaped incisors in the front and the long rows of jagged, thick molars running towards the back. The fangs themselves were longer than they were tall. Trixie held onto Spud's jacket, her teeth chattering, tears forming into her eyes. And Spud—he was just frozen solid.

_"Well,"_ Pyrothraxus began_. "Come on. We need to find that Tarrasque." _

He received no reply from the two teenagers, who were frozen into statues before him.

_"Oh-no…"_ he sighed, lowering his belly to the ground and placing his head to his claw. _"Kids, this isn't the time to have Dragonfear." _

"What's going on?" Fu asked. "Hey, what happened to them?"

_"It's my aura,"_ Pyrothraxus said. _"It doesn't affect dragons, but it does have a very—solidifying affect on humans. They're frozen with fear from the sight of me. It's Dragonfear." _

"Dragonfear?" Fu asked. "No one's had true Dragonfear in…"

_"A thousand years,"_ Pyrothraxus sighed. _"I haven't seen that look in the same amount of time. Kids, it's still me. It's Jake's dad. Come on, snap out of it. I took you kids camping once. I managed to scare off a Jersey Devil with a trombone—remember?" _

Spud's eyes blinked for a moment and he felt his body relaxed.

"Hey, yeah, but you thought it was a bear," Spud smiled. "But we knew that it was a Jersey Devil—but Trixie told me not to say anything because you're not supposed to know about magical creatures. But—you knew it was a Jersey Devil…"

_"Of course I knew it was a Jersey Devil,"_ snorted the Red Dragon. _"Trixie…wake up." _

Trixie snapped out of her stunned position, though she was still shaking from the sight of the Red Dragon before her.

"You—you really are a…a…" she swallowed. "Man…I was never this shocked when I found out about Jake."

_"It's the size difference,"_ said the Red Dragon. _"I'm 5892 years young. We get pretty big when we grow that old." _

"I bet you got a lot of candles on your cake," Spud pointed out, which brought a chuckle to Pyrothraxus.

"Uh—where are we supposed to ride?" Trixie asked.

_"On my back,"_ he replied as he snaked his lengthy neck down to them. They heard the sound of the pavement crack and buckle as the colossal Red Dragon shifted further down, raking his sickle-like, dark talons on the street. A forefoot came down to them, to assist them in mounting his shoulders.

"Come on, Spud," Trixie said lowly as she grabbed Pyrothraxus' scales and began to climb his huge muscular neck. The Great Wyrm's purple neck frill around his shoulders flattened out to allow her to straddle her legs between his shoulder blades comfortably. Spud followed and mounted behind her, holding on tightly with his arms to the scales.

"Good luck, kids!" Fu called and waved. "Take care of them, Jon. But don't worry, they've been through one of Jake's runs before."

_"This is different,"_ Pyrothraxus somberly rumbled as he lifted off of the ground. He glanced around for a moment, noticing that he did not have much room to spread his wings. The street was too narrow. It was easier to land in it, rather than to take off. Then, he glanced up, his eyes following the taller buildings. "Hang on, kids. We'll take off from the roof of that building up there. I can't afford to waste any spells since I'll be needing the cache to defeat the Tarrasque."

"Take off from a building?" Trixie asked, feeling her ride shift as Pyrothraxus' claws came up onto the sides of the building. He began to climb his way up the side, digging his claws into the concrete as he made his way up. Pieces of the building fell in the street and Fu had to duck back into the store to avoid being hit by one of them. He finally made it to the roof and dug his claws into the sides, spreading his wings wide.

_"Where did you see the Tarrasque?"_ he asked his passengers.

"Over there!" Trixie called. "Over by Park Avenue. Near the mall."

_"Then, here we go,"_ Pyrothraxus rumbled as he spread his wings. He pushed off from the edge of the roof and came into a glide, flapping his wings to gain altitude.

0

"Observer's log," began Professor Rotwood. "I've been following the appearance of this new creature since it's appearance. Of course it seems that the news has followed it as well. There are news choppers everywhere. The National Guard have yet to be called on the scene, but it is no doubt they will be here. The creature is an enormous dinosaur-like monster with a carapace on its back and spines. It resembles the monster that attacked Tokyo 50 years ago. Of course, people would call it Godzilla, but I know what it really is. The Tarrasque. Legends says there is only one—but I say there are more than one. It was created by ancient heathen gods to punish the sins of mankind."

The balding, Austrian man leaned over the balcony and watched as the Tarrasque made its way down Park Avenue, setting fire to the tops of the buildings. Two TV news copters followed behind it and one police copter circled.

"Looks like everyone knows of magic," Rotwood sighed. "Before it was just me—and Jake Long and his friends of course." He leaned back, taking pictures with his camera, capturing every moment. He felt the wind rush up behind him and he heard the sounds of grating as a dark shadow landed behind him. He glanced up when he felt something hot. He glanced back and his eyes widened and his body froze. There were two claws, each one the nearly the size of Volkswagen Beatles gripping the edge of the roof behind him. His eyes traced the two muscular forelegs and up to the huge chest, and to the long neck and then to the scaly, horned draconic visage that sat upon it.

"No…it can't be…" he breathed, shaking in is sweater and army pants. "It—is…"

The massive creature spread its wings and bellowed, calling the attention to the Tarrasque below.

"A Chromatic Red Dragon!" Rotwood exclaimed, taking more snap shots. "They are real."

Dragonfear, awe, happiness, and wonderment filled Rotwood. His head was spinning around with thoughts of the creature he saw. He could not believe that he was standing in the presence of an Ancient. All the photographs he took of dragons flying around meant nothing now compared to this moment. They were not this dragon.

"They are real…" he breathed, sinking to his knees. Then, he spotted two humans peaking out from the base of the neck of the Red Dragon. He recognized them as Trixie and Spud. "W—what are they doing on that Dragon?"

The Red Dragon lowered his head and his body, allowing his tiny passengers to slide off his sides. Trixie immediately noticed Rotwood beyond the edge of the building.

"Oh-no…not Rotwood…" she sighed.

"What's he doing here?" Spud asked.

Pyrothraxus grinned sharply, his fiery gold and orange eyes narrowing at the human taking his picture.

_"Hello, Hans,"_ he deeply rumbled. _"How's Jake doing in school?" _

"Man, I cannot believe you just asked Rotwood that!" Trixie slapped her head.

"J—Jake…" Rotwood swallowed. "You're—Mr. Long?! So…that's where he gets his powers from."

"_I am _one_ avenue," _he said. _"I only show my true form in situations like this. I came here from the Tarrasque. Nothing more. I trust you will respect that." _

"Y—yes," the school principle nodded. "I understand. Please—do your deed. Don't let me get in your way. Far be it for me to stand in the way of an Ancient."

"Rotwood knows what you are?" Trixie asked.

"Of course I know what he is!" Rotwood cried. "I'm a mythobiologist, _ja_. It's my duty to know what an Ancient Dragon is when I see one. But I thought all Chromatics were evil."

_"There are some decent ones out there,"_ replied Pyrothraxus.

"Of course!" he called. "Didn't mean to insult you. Oh, Rotwood, never insult a Great Wyrm Red Dragon—never!"

_"Spud, do you have the scroll?"_ Pyrothraxus asked.

"Yeah," he replied.

_"When I tell you to, read it to me,"_ the Red Dragon said. _"I'll go wear down the Tarrasque so we can banish it." _He paused for a moment and gripped the edge tighter._ "If I can move." _

He was already starting to freeze up, remembering the time when he was very young and tried to attack the Tarrasque. The creature continued to stare back at him and it brought those memories out. He tried to face the Tarrasque, he tried to kill it, and he was beaten nearly to death for his efforts. That was why he was afraid of it. But now, he returned and he was much larger than he was then. In fact, he seemed larger than the Tarrasque now. Still, it did not help his thoughts.

"Great, the big dragon's turning into a big chicken!" Trixie cried. "Look, you're twice as big as that big lizard. Go down there and show him who's the boss of this town. And watch the shots. We'll keep count when you fire."

_"Tell me, do you give Jake these pep talks before he goes and fights?"_ Pyrothraxus asked.

"Sometimes," she shrugged. "Now get your scaly hide down there! We'll cheer from up here. A'ight?"

_"Alright,"_ he sighed as he spread his wings and kicked off the building. Glided down and began to circle around. The Tarrasque glanced up for a moment and saw a fiery ball raced towards it, sending it flying back towards the buildings behind him. Pyrothraxus landed in the street, blinking with his many lids as he watched the Tarrasque charge for him. "Yeah, he remembers me."

The Tarrasque lunged for the Red Dragon, raking its claws across Pyrothraxus' chest. The Red Dragon reared back and boxed the Tarrasque with his claws. And the Tarrasque dodged it and bit into his enemy's neck. He dragged the Red Dragon across the street.

"Oh, come on, Mr. Long!" Trixie cried. "You're supposed to be Jake's dad! Kick that monster's keester!"

"Yeah!" Spud called. "Give him the ole one two—hiyah!"

He picked his foot up and high kicked, only to fall back on his butt.

"What's the matter with him?" Rotwood asked. "He's a Great Wyrm—a Tarrasque shouldn't be that much of a problem."

"He's—scared of the Tarrasque," sighed Trixie.

"Scared?" Rotwood asked, blinking. "Oh… _Scheiße_…"

Pyrothraxus jerked his neck and wrenched himself from the jaws of the Tarrasque. He reared up on his hind legs once more and swung both his wings around, beating the Tarrasque off of him with them. Above, Jake and Lao Shi landed in a near by building complex. And Jake was stunned to silence.

"That pixie told us that a huge monster had appeared in the streets of Manhattan," said Lao Shi.

"I found your monster, Gramps," said Jake. "And Dad's facing it."

"Aiyah!" Lao Shi cried. "The Tarrasque! Who summoned it? How did it get here?"

"What's a Tarrasque?"

"A very powerful magical creature from the ancient world," Lao Shi replied. "A monster that cannot be destroyed."

"Aw man, then, Dad has no shot…" Jake shook his head. "How can he kill something that can't be killed?"

"His only hope is to weaken it and then banish it," said Lao Shi. "This monster is beyond both of us. Better let Jonathan handle it."

"Makes you kinda glad he's here, huh?" the American Dragon grinned.

"Not really," Lao Shi replied. "Their fight is so huge that it's been broadcast on the news! There is no way we can hope to stop the scientific world from knowing what we are."

"Come on!" Trixie cried. "Use that spell! The—_Disintegration _spell, Mr. Long!"

Pyrothraxus kicked the Tarrasque off of him and swatted him back with his tail. The Tarrasque fell backwards, colliding in with the buildings on the other side of the street.

"Yeah, Dad!" called Jake.

Pyrothraxus got up onto his haunches and pressed his claws together in a particular position. He began to move the claws around in a formation of a hand sign just as the Tarrasque got up.

_"Ixen kethend svent!"_ he bellowed and landed on all fours again, anchoring himself to the ground as a charge built up in his throat. The Tarrasque got up from the rubble and charged for the Dragon again. Pyrothraxus reared his head back and blasted a beam of blue-white from his mouth. The beam shot forth and blasted the Tarrasque even farther away.

"A _Disintegration_ spell," said Lao Shi.

"He just blasted that thing through his mouth," Jake breathed.

"It's a very powerful spell that can be blasted from any point from the body," said Lao Shi. "Wizards, if they know it by heart, can blast it through their fingers—or have wands that can cast the spell. But Jonathan—has turned it into a breath weapon."

"I know what disintegration means," said Jake. "He just atomized that Tarrasque. Way to go, Dad!"

"No, he didn't," said Lao Shi. "But he has weakened it."

The Tarrasque rose up again and leapt out from the rubble, bellowing at Pyrothraxus. Pyrothraxus gripped his throat, feeling a burning sensation inside.

_"I hate using that spell,"_ he grunted. _"It always gave me a sore throat." _

"You're a real buzz-kill, Gramps…" Jake sighed.

"Three more shots, Mr. Long!" called Trixie.

The Tarrasque blasted its fire towards Pyrothraxus, who leapt out of the way, diving towards the monster. He knocked the creature back, sending it flying out onto the open street.

_"Ixen kethend svent!"_ he called as another blue-white beam shot forth and impacted on the Tarrasque.

"Two more shots!" Trixie called.

Spud's eyes blinked when he noticed that Pyrothraxus was swaying. The spell was weakening his strength.

"Hey, he don't look too good," he said.

"That spell is weakening him," said Rotwood. "I heard—that spell, when cast, can knock the caster unconscious."

"Well, let's just hope that doesn't happen," said Trixie.

"Dad…" Jake breathed. "G, he's getting weaker."

_"Ixen kethend svent!" _another blast came forth just as the Tarrasque tried to get up. Pyrothraxus breathed heavily blasting his fire at the monster, trying to pin it down to the pavement. He cast the spell one more time just as he saw the Tarrasque move and blasted it into unconsciousness. _"Spud! The banishing spell. Call it out." _

"Gethrisj osvith arisauriv nar vexen nox," Spud read.

"Spud?" Jake asked as he saw the two standing on a building. Then, he glanced back down and saw his father wave his claw in the air.

_"Gethrisj osvith arisauriv nar vexen nox!"_ the Red Dragon repeated, casting the banishing spell. But, nothing happened. The spell fizzled in Pyrothraxus' claws. _"Oh-no, I'm out. I'm tapped!" _

"What happened?" Trixie asked. "Where's the portal?"

_"I can't cast it,"_ he said. _"I'm tapped. That last blast tapped everything. It'll take 8 hours to replenish my spell cache." _

"We don't have 8 hours!" she cried. "Do something, that monster's getting up!"

_"I do have one thing,"_ Pyrothraxus sighed as he took off his gold wedding ring. _"Raesingyua!" _

The ring glowed and the ground cracked and buckled in front of Pyrothraxus. Fire rose from the crack as an enormous golden ring came out from it. Inside the ring there looked to be two other smaller rings, spinning slowly around like a gyroscope. And Lao Shi held his breath.

"It's the Gate!" he cried. "The Gate to the Nine Hells! I don't believe it."

Pyrothraxus bellowed as the two rings in the center spun around swiftly. The wind picked up and the two rings ignited in fire, as an image of a bleak, red landscape appeared through the gate. The Tarrasque slowly got up from its spot and started for the Red Dragon, fighting against the wind from the Gate that drew him back. Pyrothraxus bellowed and fires rose up around him, spinning and swirling into two cyclones. The Great Wyrm reared up and flapped his wings, sending the two tornados of fire colliding with the Tarrasque and shoving it through the Gate. The image of the landscape disappeared as the gyroscope slowed down. Pyrothraxus dismissed the Gate and watched it sink back down into the street. He placed his golden ring back on his finger and started to climb up the building where Trixie and Spud were.

_"Come on, kids,"_ he said. They mounted back up on his back and he lifted back off into the sky, leaving Rotwood. Rotwood shook his head, blinking, his mind still whirling around in a hundred different speeds. Then, he fainted. Lao Shi and Jake followed Pyrothraxus, who entered the clouds above. They found him resting on a cloud itself as if it was solid like a bed.

"Dad!" Jake called. "You're sitting on a cloud."

_"Oh, hey, Jake,"_ he rumbled. _"Yeah—one of the abilities I have." _

"Hey, Jakie!" called Trixie.

"Trixie, Spud," Jake began as he landed on his father's back. Lao Shi followed him.

"You summoned the Gate," said Lao Shi.

_"Well, it was either that or watch New York become Tarrasque chow,"_ Pyrothraxus shrugged.

"But by doing so, you just exposed the magical world!" Lao Shi shouted. "Can you be anymore ignorant?"

_"I think the Tarrasque already did that when someone summoned it,"_ he said. _"Oh, by the way, it was Ithfaedeus who summoned it." _

"The Dark Dragon?" Jake asked.

"Yeah," said Spud. "We saw him do it."

"What are we gonna do?" Lao Shi panted. "Humans know about magic now. We're all doomed. They'll hunt us down like during the Dark Times."

_"I think we can fix that,"_ said a familiar voice.

Pyrothraxus turned his head and his eyes brightened. There standing on another cloud was O'eterus and Sayan'i. And behind them were the three other Metallic Dragons, Dathus the Copper, Ophelia the Bronze, and Yanus the Brass.

"It's the Metallic Dragons!" Lao Shi exclaimed.

_"Galen!"_ Pyrothraxus shouted. _"I didn't call you." _

_"No, but you need help,"_ said O'eterus. _"You don't have enough energy to fix this. The world is not ready to know about us yet. But soon—Lung Lao Shi, they will." _

"They will?" Lao Shi asked.

_"The Younger Dragons have done well with keeping the secret all these years, but sometimes, secrets are not meant to be kept forever,"_ said Sayan'i. _"We are all a part of this world. We should all share in it—not hide in shadow." _

_"Now, for what the humans have seen,"_ said Dathus. _"It will take all of us to do it." _

The Copper Dragon lifted his head up and bellowed out, his voice joined by Ophelia, and then Yanus. Then, Sayan'i joined in, with O'eterus calling last. Pyrothraxus lowered his head for a moment, and then, spread his wings, bellowing out and joining in. All six of them bellowing, their joined voices became a single note that roared through the heavens. The clouds rumbled and lightning flashed.

"What's happening?" Trixie called.

"I don't know," Jake said.

Below the clouds, it started raining on the city of Manhattan.

0

_"They are here,"_ said Ithfaedeus as he felt the rain beat down on his black scales.

"What is going on, Master?" Chang asked.

_"All six of them are erasing the minds of the humans below,"_ he replied. _"My plan has worked." _

"Pyrothraxus is still alive," said Chang.

_"But he revealed something I wanted to see,"_ said the Dark Dragon. _"He summoned the Gate. Now, I know where it is. It is with him." _

"I don't understand, Master," she glanced down at the buildings below.

_"The Gate Key is that ring he wears,"_ he replied. _"He carries it with him everywhere he goes. Now—we have a way of freeing my brethren from Avernus." _

The two flew off from the scene and vanished as the lightning continued to strike.

0

"Hey, kids," called Susan as she saw them all land.

"Mom, dad was awesome!" Jake called. "He beat the Tarrasque."

"Tarrasque?" Susan asked. She glanced around when she did not see her husband arrive with them. "Where is he?"

"Jonathan said he had some business to take care of," said Lao Shi.

"He was supposed to bring Fu over here to get that brownie out of our sink!" Susan growled. "Wait till I get my hands on his scaly hide."

"A brownie in our sink?" Jake asked as he shifted back into his human form. "Come on, guys. Don't worry, Mom. We'll get it out."

0

He stood there silently in a quiet meadow, with the moon shining on his red scales. Pyrothraxus felt the wind pick up around him and blow his frills about. He smoothed them back and looked over to Sayan'i. The moon's light glinted off of her silvery scales. She turned around as he walked up to her.

_"I want to hear you say it,"_ she said. _"Say that you love someone else now." _

_"You know I do," _Pyrothraxus replied. _"All I want is closure from you. Ever since that night, you've haunted me." _

_"She's not going to live forever,"_ said the Silver Dragon.

_"I know,"_ he rumbled, lowering his head. _"But I will lover her even in her old age." _

_"You thought you would die with her—didn't you?"_ she asked.

_"Yes,"_ Pyrothraxus sighed. _"I did. Now—I can't even do that. I should give this ring back that you gave to me. But I need it to guard the Gate." _

She turned around and looked back at him: _"It was a gift. I know that you will return to me someday. I am patient." _

He looked away from her and lowered his head again.

_"You mourn her death even now," _Sayan'i said as she studied him. _"I can see it in your eyes. And then—when she is gone, you will wither away in your lair, grieving for the rest of eternity over the loss." _

_"She has given me life,"_ he told her as tears formed in his eyes.

_"But you know that life will not last forever,"_ she said to him. _"Jake and Haley may have some of your powers, but what they do not possess is the gift of your long life. You know this. The blood of their grandfather drowns out most of the gifts you have given them. And when their stars have all fallen and you are drowning in grief, you know that I am here for you. I'll be waiting on the other side for your return._ _Boe i bedin." _

She flew off after that and vanished in the starry sky.

_"Pedin in naid i aníron, a av-cheniathal nin," _he sighed.

Pyrothraxus lowered his head and his body to the ground. He closed his eyes and silently began to weep. It was a fate that he shared with all immortals now. He would see his family grow old, die, and wither away into myth and legend. He lifted up off the ground and launched into the air.

0

Everyone was asleep in the house by the time he got home. Jonathan slowly tip-toed in, taking off his shoes as he went up stairs. He slowly opened the door to his and his wife's room and walked silently in as best as he could. He could hear the sounds of the wood under the carpet creaking a bit when he walked in and he stopped briefly when he saw his wife shift in the bed.

_I think I better sleep on the couch tonight…_he thought as he took off his jacket. He went into his bathroom to change into his pajamas and then came back outside to tip-toe out the door.

"Jonathan?" came a sleepy voice from the bed. Susan had heard him coming in and awoke. "Where have you been?"

"There—were some things I needed to tie up," he replied.

"Is this about your old flame?" she asked.

Jonathan paused for a moment and just blinked at her, taking off his glasses: "What?"

"This Sayan'i girl," Susan said, shifting her weight over. "I hear that she—was the one who got you to ascend. And she was the one who brought you out of evil. I suppose that I would have never been able to do that for you."

"You've been talking to Jake."

"Yes," she smirked, but not in a way that Jonathan liked. "I'm sorry, she's not a girl, is she? Just how old is she?"

"5412," he replied.

"So—more your age," Susan began. "Trying to play the field again with her? Is that why you were out so late?"

"No," he replied. "I was trying to—tell her that I didn't have feelings for her anymore. Of course then she said something—really mean."

"What did she say?" she asked.

"She—reminded me of the mistake I made by ascending," Jonathan said as he sat down on the bed. "Susan, remember something about me. Everyday we live, I won't grow old, but you will. I may—change my human appearance to match your age, but in truth I'll remain the same."

"She told you that I was going to die," she said. Susan laid back down and bunched up her pillow under her head. "What are you going to do when I'm dead?"

Jonathan could not even bring himself to say what he was going to do. He shook his head and laid down on the pillow, placing both hands on his face. Susan lifted up, hearing the sounds of his audible sobs.

"I knew what I was getting into—what I was doing when I told you I loved you," he wept. "I knew. The fact you being born a dragon doesn't help the fact you don't have a dragon's long life. We never gave you—longevity. We—wanted you to live with human mortality."

"I—guess you also never meant to fall in love with one of us either," Susan sighed.

"This," he whispered. "This is what I was afraid of. This is why I didn't want to tell you. Susan…" he got up and looked at her, tears streaming down his face. "I married you because I loved you. I don't care what will happen. You're here right now, today."

"But, I won't be here tomorrow," she whispered back.

"What do you want me to do?" he asked. "You want me to leave? I don't want to leave you. Ever."

"Jon…" she shook her head. "I don't want you to leave."

"Do you want me to stop loving you?" Jonathan asked. "You're mortal, I'm not, so I can't love you. Is that what you wanted me to say? You want to know what I'd do if you died? I'd probably kill myself afterwards. I'd grieve so much that I'd crawl away into my lair and curl up and die. I love you, Susan. Sayan'i gave me the ability to love—you gave me the reason."

He laid back on his back and sighed. She got up and looked down on him. She saw just how distressed he was about this in his ruby eyes. He glanced up into her deep brown eyes and she saw just how much he loved her.

"I want to be truthful to you now," he said. "No more lies. I'm not going to grow old or die like you—but I will be here to love you through your life."

Susan sighed as she laid her head down on his chest, feeling his arms come up around her. And the two laid there, silently. She could hear his heart flutter in his chest as he thought about what will happen to them. He did not want to think about it. Susan began to shiver, pulling the covers over her. Jonathan picked up on her shivers and shifted into his dragon form. She could feel the temperature change as a wing came over and enveloped her in warmth. Pyrothraxus sensed that his wife was falling asleep against his chest and ran his talons through her hair. Susan nuzzled up against him, laying her head across his neck and wrapped her arms around him. Then, he followed her, trying to once more dream of a world where everything made sense and he went on with his family still believing he was human.


	9. The Dragonslayer's Oath

**The Dragonslayers' Oath**

"A Great Wyrm Chromatic Red Dragon," the Huntsmaster began. "Practically one of the most powerful dragons ever known. And here I thought they were all but extinct."

He rose up from his seat and crossed his arms, looking out through the arched window of his lair. He chuckled slightly as he stared out at the rainy landscape of the New York skyline. It had only been a few days since he first saw the Red Dragon who came to save the Phoenix and the American Dragon. The creature known as Pyrothraxus the Red—a magnificent specimen of agility, power, and grace.

"He would look rather nice on the mantle," the Huntsmaster chuckled. "Unfortunately, the Huntsclan as become soft since the time of the Ancients. We will need to strengthen our arsenal in order to bring such a powerful beast to his knees."

He walked away from his desk of various photos he had gathered on Pyrothraxus. His mind turned away from the American Dragon to the new threat. This was an Ancient, one of the most powerful creatures in the world. No dragon that existed today could even match the sheer power and force that a Chromatic or Metallic Dragon had. The Huntsmaster knew that things have now changed. His organization swore to themselves to either control or destroy magical creatures. Magical creatures were dangerous to the human world. The Huntsmaster slowly walked down the corridor, glancing around at all of the statues of various creatures he had caught and killed. His eyes finally fell upon a painting of a man dressed in Medieval clothing and armor, holding up a lance to an enormous Chromatic Red Dragon. The human was the founder of the Huntsclan, Count Luis of Bar. The Red Dragon he apposed was none other than Pyrothraxus himself. The history of the Huntsclan origins dated 820 AD, during the feudal era shortly after the fall of the Roman Empire. The land of Bar in France was subjugated under the iron rule of Pyrothraxus the Red, who forced upon its people a lottery to barter his protection. If the Count and his people did not pay the Red Dragon, he would come and lay waste to the land. The lottery consisted of names of every female virgin human in the Comté to be placed into a barrel and then drawn at the end of the Winter Solstice. That virgin would be brought forth to the Count and then sent to an alter near the dragon's lair for the dragon to pick up and devour. There had been rumors of what Pyrothraxus did to the virgins prior to consumption of the virgins, and most consisted of various forms of sexual abuse and rape. One of those victims was the Count's own daughter Anastasie. The Red Dragon's twisted desires for various forms of horrific pleasures, both to fill his belly and cool the fire of his feverish lust angered the people of Bar and enraged Luis. Luis rose and army up against Pyrothraxus in attempt to drive the Red Dragon out of Bar. They suffered heavy losses from the fight and Pyrothraxus wanted his revenge. He turned his anger on the Comté and utterly destroyed it in a fiery blaze. Angered by his loss, Luis vowed to slay Pyrothraxus and any dragon that he came across. With that the first Dragonslayers' Oath was made and the rise of the Huntsclan began. Now, over a thousand years later Pyrothraxus has returned and the Huntsclan had to be ready for him.

He finally brought himself to a secret chamber under his mansion. Deep below were the constructions of the various weapons that the Huntsclan used against the world of magic. There his eyes came to an enormous machine that was supported by various riggings from the walls and ceiling. It was a mecha, a humanoid-like automaton that housed various weapons built just for the task of slaying such an enormous dragon. It stood as tall as a Frost Giant. The Huntsmaster turned his eyes to the floor where the Huntsgirl was and he called out to her.

"Huntsgirl!" he said. "Huntsgirl, come here."

"Yes, Huntsmaster," Rose replied as she watched him descend the stares.

"How are the final preparations?" he asked.

"We are almost done, sir," she replied. "We are installing the missiles now."

"Good," he said. "We shall succeed where our forefather had failed. We will slay Pyrothraxus the Red."

"Yes, sir," Rose nodded. She turned away for a moment, remembering that Pyrothraxus was not the dragon he was during the incident in Bar. When she first met the American Dragon's father, he seemed saddened by his actions attributing to the formation of the Huntsclan. She glanced back at the robot. Rose knew deep down she had to tell Jonathan about the construction of this monstrosity and the purpose it was created for. Her mind began to rest on Jake as well and she wondered if his father had told him about some of his past. Knowing Jonathan "Pyrothraxus" Long it was possible that he had not. Pyrothraxus was ashamed of his past with good reason. What he did in those days was not something he wanted to bring up in light conversation. Rose had to agree with him on that. Still, this new weapon was something he had to know. She made a decision to walk Jake home tomorrow from school and have a word with his father.

0

Pyrothraxus collapsed upon the couch, pulling the throw over his head. One wing draped over the back of the couch while the other wing laid upon the rug in the living room. His tail drooped over the edge of the arm of the couch. Susan growled as she threw a pillow at him.

"Get up!" she sighed. "I'm not that mad at you."

The Red Dragon pulled the covers off his head and he curled himself under them, his glowing eyes looking fearful at his wife.

"Stop looking at me like that!" Susan called. "You're looking at me as if I was about to hit you over the head with a bat."

"Are you?" Pyrothraxus asked. "That's what I'm trying to figure out."

"Why would I hit you with a bat just because you're going to see that Sayan'i—lady again?" Susan asked.

"You tell me," Pyrothraxus leaned up, flipping himself onto his back. He stretched his legs out over the arm of the couch. "I'm going to see my ex. I know how much you don't like that."

"You're going to see her as an Ancient seeing another Ancient, not—the way you used to be," said Susan. "I hope."

She settled herself down on the couch, leaning against Pyrothraxus.

"See?" he asked. "You are jealous. And you're still mad at me."

Susan sighed and grabbed hold of her husband's horned chin. Bringing his muzzle close to her, she pressed her lips against his beaked jaws. Pyrothraxus felt himself begin to melt into the kiss, wrapping his forelegs around her waist. Susan wrapped her arms around his long neck as she held long into the kiss itself. Then, she broke it, pulling away. She saw the tears in his eyes flow down his cheeks. Something deep inside was upsetting Pyrothraxus. Leaning over, she began to kiss away the tears, pressing her lips on one cheek and then the other. Susan leaned down, laying her head against his plated neck. The Red Dragon gently brushed the tips of his claws against her back, once more his mind just wanting to return to the days where his secret was safely tucked away—his past was hidden from his wife and his son and daughter—and when everything made sense again. He wanted those days to come back so much.

"Jon," Susan began. "I—I know you're hiding something from me. I want to know it. Every time you look at me lately—you just seem so sad."

"My past is coming back to haunt me and—there are things I've done—I'm afraid to tell you," Pyrothraxus replied. "I'm afraid—you'd leave me because of it."

"You told me that you didn't want to lie to us anymore…" said Susan. "Just like I don't want to lie to you. I've told you everything. Now, it's your turn."

"Susan…" he began. Pyrothraxus once more leaned up to kiss her. Once more he was lost in her lips again. The door opened up and Jake and Rose stepped through into the living room.

"Hey, mom, dad…uh…" Jake began, pausing for a moment. "Uh…"

Rose just stared slack-jawed at the moment Jake's parents were having. Pyrothraxus tore himself away from his wife and swiftly brought himself to his feet, knocking Susan off the couch.

"Uh…" he began. "Hey, kids. This is a surprise."

"Uh…yeah…" Jake shook his head at his father. "I really don't wanna know right now."

"Hey, Mr. and Mrs. Long," Rose waved, curling a lock of her golden hair in her fingers. "Jake and I were about to go to the kitchen and study for—our test tomorrow."

"Oh!" Susan called. "Uh, sure, you can use the kitchen. I was about to boil some noodles for spaghetti. And Jonathan was gonna help."

"That's right," Pyrothraxus nodded, making his way to the kitchen. "I roll the meat and she makes the sauce."

"That's right," Susan grinned sheepishly, taking hold of one of the Red Dragon's horns. She began pulling him into the kitchen. "Why don't you two stay in the living room and study? Come on, Jon. We'll be in the kitchen if you need us."

"Okie-dokie, see you kids later…" Pyrothraxus grinned. "Ow, do you have to pull so hard, Susan?"

"Aw, man…" Jake slumped down on the couch. "I can't believe they were getting all…mushy in the living room."

"Well, your parents do love each other," said Rose. "You can't deny that. It's what two people do when they love each other."

"Yeah…" Jake sighed. "Sometimes I wonder though. All because of Sayan'i showing up, mom wonders if the love is still there. And dad is just upset that she thinks that because he tells me that the love is there and she's just jealous. But dad has to go see Sayan'i tonight because she needs to tell him something. Dad sometimes says he wishes we never knew about him being a dragon and he would pretend to not know about me and Haley being dragons."

"Sorry, I can't help you there, Jake," Rose said. "Look, I'm gonna go ask if there's some snacks we can eat while we study. Just wait here."

"Okay," Jake nodded as Rose got up from her seat. She walked into the kitchen and found Susan and Pyrothraxus at the stove. The Chromatic Red Dragon was rolling the beef up in his crimson color claws. Susan was boiling the water while she was cutting the onions.

"Hey, guys…" Rose began. Pyrothraxus and Susan looked up.

"Hi there!" the Red Dragon called cheerfully. "What can I do yah for, Rose?"

"Well, we like some pop," she began. "And…I was wondering if I could talk to you alone, Mr. Long."

"Sure," he replied. "You'll be okay in here, honey?"

"Yeah," Susan replied, wiping her eyes.

"Susan?" Pyrothraxus asked, noticing her tears.

"Oh, it's the onions," she said. "My eyes are stinging. I'm okay."

Pyrothraxus sighed as he followed Rose into a hallway away from Susan. Once she felt she was out of range of the dragon's wife, Rose turned back to Pyrothraxus and looking up into his glowing, amber eyes.

"Mr. Long, I need to talk to you about the Huntsclan," she began. "About Count Luis."

The Red Dragon let loose a deep sigh, growling at his own horrible past again. He glanced away.

"I had a feeling you'd say something about it," he sighed. "What I did then—I am more than sorry. I wish I could make it up to them. The people of Bar didn't deserve such a punishment for defending their lands against a horrible monster—naming me."

"Well, apparently, the Huntsclan has vowed your death," she said. "First and foremost, it was started because of you. Now, my uncle has built a machine to do just that. Because he found out that you still exist, he's built a massive robot to kill you with."

Pyrothraxus shook his head and growled again.

"I'm warning you about this," she said. "So you'll be ready if and when he does show up with it. He's doing it for our forefather who's daughter your raped and murdered back then. They made that oath over a thousand years ago and now he wants to see it through."

"I am so sorry, Rose," he said softly. "I—was evil then. Evil can do many things and not caring the least bit about it."

"Mr. Long," Rose began. "I know you're not evil now. I know you're trying to make up for what you've done in the past. But my uncle doesn't understand. He sees all magical creatures as evil."

"My actions didn't help his views," Pyrothraxus said.

"I know, but still," Rose continued. "You're a good person now. You have a family that loves you and you love them back. I don't want to take that away, that's why I'm telling you about the robot. Maybe you can find it and destroy it before it's finished in its construction. Here's where it's being completed." She handed him a piece of paper. "If you go there, you'll stop it from being completed. You'll be safe and Jake will be safe. That's all I care about now."

"Thank you, Rose," rumbled Pyrothraxus. "I appreciate that. I'm glad someone has at least forgiven me for my sins."

"There's another thing," Rose began. "Have you talked to Jake about—what started the Huntsclan?"

"No," he replied. "I—haven't the heart to tell him."

"You have to someday," Rose said. "You can't keep this from him."

The Red Dragon turned his gaze to her, steamy tears rolling down his cheeks again. His head looked up at the ceiling when his keen ears picked up the soft chimes of the grandfather clock in the living room. Sayan'i was waiting for him.

"I have to go," Pyrothraxus began. "Tell my wife—I've gone to meet Sayan'i. I'll be back shortly. Tell her—to start dinner without me if she has to."

"I will," Rose nodded. "But, remember what I said. You can't keep that secret from either of them. You shouldn't. If you don't tell Jake, I will. He has to know why the Huntsclan was formed. He has to know what you did."

Pyrothraxus could not bring himself to say anything else and just dipped his head softly to her. Then, he vanished in a puff of smoke and flames. Rose sighed as she returned back into the kitchen.

"Mrs. Long…" she called to Susan. "He had to leave."

"Sayan'i…" began Susan. "I had a feeling about that. I just don't trust her…and him even less."

"Mr. Long loves you," Rose began.

"I know…" Susan said. "But, I think he loved me because he knew he would never see _her _again. If he knew he would see her again, I don't think I would have a chance. I'm not gonna live as long as Jonathan will. That's why I think when—when the time comes, he should go back to her." She dropped the knife and turned away from her work. Glancing back at Rose, Susan smiled sadly. "Will, you two be alright?"

"What?" Rose asked.

"Could you keep an eye on the pot for me?" Susan asked. "I—think I need something from the store. I'll—be right back."

"Sure," Rose said, confused. "We'll be okay."

"Thanks," Susan smiled as she left the house through the back kitchen door.

Rose sighed as she walked into the living room. She did not know what to tell Jake.

"Hey, how's the food coming?" asked Jake.

"Your dad flew off to see Sayan'i and your mother went off somewhere," she replied. "We're alone and I'm keeping an eye on the food."

"Say what?" asked Jake. "You mean, we're alone?"

"Yes," Rose replied.

Jake grinned, pulling out his comb and brushing it through his greenish black hair. He leaned back, placing an arm around the back of the couch and cocked an eyebrow at Rose. Rose glanced down when she heard the sound of her cell phone go off. She pulled it out, reading the number on the back.

"Jake," she began. "Now is not the time. The Huntsclan is about to make a move and I know who they're after."

"Who?" Jake asked.

"Your dad," she replied.

"What?" Jake asked. "Why? I mean—okay, yeah, I see why. He's a dragon too. But still…"

"It's not just because your dad is a dragon," replied Rose. "It's because he's also Pyrothraxus the Red. The Huntsclan has a beef on him. It's because he was the one who caused the formation of the Huntsclan."

"My dad started the Huntsclan?" Jake asked, confused.

"Your dad was the reason why the Huntsclan started," said Rose. "Your father over a thousand years ago in France started a lottery that brought to him one female virgin each year to devour. Not only to devour, but do whatever his twisted mind could think of."

"What?" Jake asked. "No…that's not my dad…"

"It was your dad," Rose said. "I know he's different now. But he was evil once. He was one of the worst evil beings on the continent of Europe. Your father conquered lands and set himself up as an overlord above them, taxing the land, ravishing it, tormenting the people that lived there. And when he did, the people who he ruled over rebelled lead by Count Luis of Bar. When your father took Luis' daughter the night of the lottery—and then raped and devoured her—Luis vowed his revenge upon Pyrothraxus. He formed the Huntsclan afterwards. And since then, the Huntsclan has never forgotten its origins. That's why your father often would become sad or depressed over hearing the Huntsclan because he knew what he did. He knows he can never take it back no matter how much he wanted. Now, my uncle has built a machine to slay your father and avenge Count Luis' murdered daughter and all the people of Bar that your father has slaughtered."

Jake shook his head violently, not wanting to hear anymore.

"No, I don't believe that," Jake said. "No…"

"Jake, that's why Mr. Long hid his past from you and the rest of the family," Rose said. "That's why he didn't want you to know he was a dragon. He knew that his past would catch up to him and he knew that sooner or later you would have to know the real—dark truth about who Pyrothraxus really is."

"My grandfather said that Pyrothraxus was a good person," Jake jerked away from her, standing up from the couch. "He and Galen formed the race that I, Haley, and my mother belong to in order to protect people—magical and even non-magical that get caught up in evil plots and plans someone like your uncle would think up. He…"

"Your father—Pyrothraxus," began Rose. "Wasn't always a good person. He was evil once. He is a Chromatic Red Dragon, and most Red Dragons are vain, megalomaniacal, egotistical monsters that want nothing more than pain and suffering for people they consider beneath them. Most of his life, your dad was no different than all the other Red Dragons out there. He laughed at the torment he inflicted upon people—magical and non-magical. It took a lot of work for the Metallics to turn your father good—to make him go against what has been ingrained in every Red Dragon since—since forever. They knew that with a powerful Chromatic Red Dragon like your father on their side, they could have a chance at winning the war. That's why they forced him to be good—to see the wrongs he has done—to turn him to the light and bring him out of darkness. And when he saw what he did, Pyrothraxus' heart burst from the weight of his own wrong-doings. He thought that giving a piece of himself to create your race would be a way of giving back what he took when he was evil. That's the truth, Jake."

Jake still continued to shake his head, not wanting to hear more. He did not want to hear the fact that his father was once an evil, horrible monster that tormented, slaughtered, raped, and murdered people for his own amusement. To him—that was not his father.

"Fine," Rose sighed. "Don't believe me. But whether or not you do doesn't change your father's past—nor does it change the fact that my uncle wants revenge. He's gonna kill your father—or at least attempt it."

"My dad's an Ascended Dragon," Jake growled. "Your uncle can try."

"Jake, I have to go," she said as she picked up her jacket and headed out the door. "I'm going to try and stop my uncle as best as I could. I'm going to go against the Oath to kill your father for what he did to Bar because I know your father is a changed man now. You can help me or stay here, it's your choice."

Jake pulled on his jacket: "I'm going with you."


	10. More Secrets than You can Shake a Stick

**More Secrets than You can Shake a Stick At**

"_Kii chiili wux still tuor ve, Sayan'i?" _Pyrothraxus asked. _"Si chiili ti itov wux jaka."_

"_Si vucot," _Sayan'i replied. "I felt bad about leaving you, Pyrothraxus. I always have. In some ways, when I knew the time would come and you would come to the Outer Planes—you would want me again. But every time I see you, I see her in your eyes. _Wux tepoha ouith ve."_

"You've hurt me!" the Red Dragon bellowed. "Because of your return, Susan wonders whether or not I still love you. Every time she looks at me, she questions whether or not I'll remain faithful to her. No matter how much I try to show her that it's over between you and I, she doesn't believe me."

The Silver Dragon glanced down, looking at the snowy ground below her. Snow flakes fell upon her shoulders and she glanced back to the Red Dragon. Pyrothraxus' fiery red scales were covered in a thin coating of white from the snow. His hot breath appeared as steam from his nostrils. Sayan'i could smell lilac perfume on him as he was trying to hide the foul, sulfuric stench his kind was known to have. Pyrothraxus glanced away from her, snorting a cloud of steam from his cavernous nostrils. He shook his violet-tipped neck frill in frustration and glanced down at the golden wedding ring on his finger.

"_Si itov nebeur," _he rumbled. _"Ehis wux shilta renthisj geou thirku coi. Zyak, gethrisj de tenpiswo!"_

Sayan'i jerked back at his tone, her crystal blue eyes widening. Pyrothraxus stared back at her, his golden, glowing eyes on fire. His lips pulled back over his dagger-like teeth and he let loose a deep and spiteful growl at the Silver Dragon. Unbeknownst of both dragons, Susan Long pulled up in her car. She got out, rubbing her gloved hands together, shivering in the cold. She saw both dragons standing in the snow. Where her husband stood, the snow was melting, revealing the brown, dead grass below. She saw the heat radiate off of his body. Flames flickered about his nostrils as black smoke rose up. She could tell that Pyrothraxus was getting angry.

"_Qe bihainwor!"_ Pyrothraxus bellowed. "Go away!"

"Pyrothraxus…" she whispered.

"I know what you're trying to do, Sayan'i," Pyrothraxus continued. "You're jealous of Susan. You're jealous now and disappointed that I love another. You left me, remember? You left. I know that I'll out live my wife, my son, my daughter and any other child I'll come across in my family. I know that. But I'm happy now. Do you understand? How dare you come back here—expecting me to become all depressed over the fact I'll out live my wife and then hope I'll come crawling back to you in my sorrow."

Susan leaned against a tree, smiling when she heard her husband.

"I love Susan," Pyrothraxus continued. "And you coming back into my life will not change that. That's why you're hurting me. Just stop it! Stop it and be happy that I'm happy. I have a family now."

"Are you happier with her than you were with me?" Sayan'i asked.

"You manipulative bitch…" Pyrothraxus growled. "How dare you ask such a question! Just to spite you, I'll say 'yes'. Why? Because Susan would never ask such a backstabbing question. I'm tired of you toying with me like this. Get over yourself, Sayan'i."

The Silver Dragon lowered her head in sadness, feeling the sting of rejection in her heart. Pyrothraxus shivered again, his body giving him a reminder that he hated the cold. Though he was an Ascended Dragon, his immortal state did not help much against the cold. Pyrothraxus turned away from her, pulling his body till he completely faced away from her.

"Don't ask for my help again, Crimson Dragon," she stated coldly.

"I won't," said Pyrothraxus. "I know why you help me." He turned his head back to her. "You hope that if you do help me—you might win me over again."

"That's not true," Sayan'i sighed. "I help you because I am a good person. In many ways, you still think like a Red Dragon—you still think that people are out for their own personal gain—that no action can be selfless."

"Look into my eyes and say you help me out of the goodness of your heart and not because you hope I'd beg you to take me back," he growled at her, staring straight at her. Sayan'i looked into his eyes and then turned away from them. She could not look at them anymore. She knew he was right. Pyrothraxus got his answer and he huffed. "It figures. I appreciate for what you've done—you made me see the errors of my ways. But at the same time, you've given me sorrow—unending sorrow. When I was evil, I didn't care and hindsight rarely bothered me. Now, I'm plagued by it. I just hope I can have the strength to tell the truth to my wife. I wonder—I wonder if she'll ever look at me the same way again."

_Jonathan…_Susan thought, clutching at the tree. _What is it that haunts you so much?_

"If—she loves you, she'll—forgive you," Sayan'i swallowed, her own heart breaking. _"Navaer, Pyrothraxus."_

"_Wux clax doege, Daguam Darastrix," _Pyrothraxus rumbled as the Silver Dragon's form faded away. He sighed and lowered himself to the ground, staring back at the gold wedding ring round his finger.

"Jonathan…" Susan began. Pyrothraxus' head lifted up and he swung it around, his golden eyes wide. He was shocked to find her.

"Susan…" he breathed. "What—what are you doing here?"

"I wanted—to see for myself about what you two often talk about when you meet her," she replied, slowly walking to him and resting a hand on his red-scaled foreleg. "Jonathan…I'm sorry for doubting you."

"I've—doubted myself many times," he sighed. "Especially when I went to see Sayan'i. She brought back so many feelings I never knew I felt anymore. But—when I remember those feelings I also remember that she also left me. She thinks that she could win my heart back by saying things like—you growing old before my eyes and…I'll be the one who has to bury you when your time comes."

"What will you do?" Susan asked.

"Jake and Haley would be grown up by then…" Pyrothraxus replied. "They wouldn't need me. I'd go and find your soul and—be with you wherever you end up in the Afterlife."

"So, you really don't love Sayan'i anymore?" she asked.

"No," Pyrothraxus replied. "I don't."

He rumbled and leaned over, nuzzling Susan gently with his snout. Susan giggled, feeling the hot air from his nostrils warm her insides. She could smell a slight hint of the rotten egg smell on his breath. She realized that no matter how hard Jonathan tried, he could never truly get rid of the sulfur smell Red Dragons like himself were known for. Susan, though, had grown accustomed to the smell and she hardly even noticed it.

"_Le annon gorf gelebren lîn a gorf valthen a veleth uireb nîn, a le beston," _Pyrothraxus rumbled, recalling the old Elfish marriage vows. _ "Le eston Susan Long."_

"I love it when you talk Elfish," Susan giggled. "Maybe I should get you to start charming some of my elf assistants at the caterers."

"_Cerithon iest lîn," _he whispered softly to her. _"Le melon, Susan."_

"_Le melon, Jonathan," _Susan whispered back.

"Isn't this a pretty sight?" chuckled a sinister, muffled voice from the shadows. Pyrothraxus rose up, growling at the intruder. He ignited his fires as smoke rose up from his nostrils. Susan dashed behind one of Pyrothraxus' forelegs. The shadowy figure came into the light.

"Huntsmaster…" Pyrothraxus breathed when he saw the dracolich-helmed, hooded, armed figure.

"Hello, Pyrothraxus," the Huntsmaster began. "You and I have a little score to settle."

Pyrothraxus growled deeply, his voice reverberating through the ground. His body began to glow a soft golden light and the Huntsmaster staggered back for a moment. In his mind he knew the Red Dragon was using one of his ascension powers on him. He was using the power of the _Ascended Awesome Aura_ that had replaced his _Dragon Aura_ to cause fear in the heart and mind of the Huntsmaster. The aura itself extended down to Susan and she began to feel the warmth, comfort, and love her husband had for her through the Ascended Dragon's aura and that gave her courage. The _Awesome Aura _was more powerful than his regular _Dragon Aura_. The Huntsmaster staggered back, nearly shaken with the feeling of dread and anguish in his heart.

"Go away…" Pyrothraxus growled.

"No…" the Huntsmaster called back, fighting against the overwhelming dread he felt. He shakily step forward, fighting against the aura until he felt the horrible emotions inside of him slowly slip away. "I'm not going to leave until I avenge my forefather…Count Luis of Bar."

"That was over a thousand years ago, Huntsmaster," Pyrothraxus began. "The deed has been done. I'm sorry I did it. I can't take it back, but it's unhealthy to hold a grudge for that long."

"Saying your sorry won't bring back the lives of those people you took!" the Huntsmaster cried as he raised his staff and fired upon Pyrothraxus. The glowing ball of energy impacted on the Red Dragon's scales, but it had hardly any effect on him. The blast barely even left a burnt mark on Pyrothraxus' chest plates.

"You'll have to do better than that…" the Red Dragon chuckled.

"Wonderful…he's an Ascended Dragon…" the Huntsmaster sighed. "No matter, I intend to, Pyrothraxus the Red. But first, I wonder what you were planning to do to that human woman there. Were you going to do the same to her as you did to the women of Bar?"

"I am not that monster anymore, Huntsmaster," growled Pyrothraxus. "I've changed."

Susan was about to protest that she was not exactly human, but in order to keep all of her family safe, she decided not to. Still, she had to wonder what the Huntsmaster meant.

"You dragons never change," the Huntsmaster began. "You're still the same, arrogant, greedy monsters as you've always been. But you are the last of the Ancient Dragons. Not only will I glorify in your death, I will revel in the knowledge that there will be no more. The Younger Dragons like the American Dragon will be easy pickings after you, Pyrothraxus!"

"Yo!" called another voice from the air. "Huntsmaster, we dragon's aren't gonna go down without a fight!

"Ja—I mean, American Dragon…" Pyrothraxus corrected as he saw the smaller, red-scaled dragon leap out from the sky. Jake positioned himself between his father and mother and the Huntsmaster, going into a fighting stance.

"Hey, Pyro…" the American Dragon called. "You throwin' a party and didn't invite me?"

"Well, I didn't think the party was going to be crashed…" Pyrothraxus growled.

"Wonderful, the American Dragon is here as well," the Huntsmaster began, his voice held a menacing smile. "I will have the pleasure of finishing both of you off at once. Huntsclan, at my side!"

Out of the shadows, the rest of the Huntsclan flipped out, pointing their staves at the two dragons. Rose, dressed in her Huntsgirl uniform, also flipped out, looking worriedly at both dragons.

"You, my dear," the Huntsmaster began, looking at Susan who hid behind Pyrothraxus. "You are free to go. I have no qualms about you. Go and be free of that horrid monster."

"Go…" Pyrothraxus whispered to her. "We'll be alright."

"Jon…" she whispered back so that only he could hear. "Just come home safely."

Susan dashed off back to the woods, heading for her car. Once Pyrothraxus felt that she was safe, he turned back to the Huntsmaster, growling deeply.

"If you want a fight, Huntsmaster," he rumbled. "You've picked the wrong dragon to start one with. I am out of your league. I was out of Count Luis' league too. And that was before I was Ascended. I killed him and most of his followers over a thousand years ago. I devoured their flesh. I gave him no quarter when he struck out at me. But I'll give you this one chance. Leave and don't seek me again. Leave and I will not follow, nor will I attack you. That is my offer for the damages I have done to the people of Bar."

"I spit at your offer, Red Dragon!" the Huntsmaster called back. "Count Luis died trying to kill you."

"And you'll die the same horrible death!" Pyrothraxus reared back and blasted a fireball out from his jaws. Jake leapt out of the way as the fireball came spiraling towards the Huntsclan. Several managed to leap out of the way, but some were not so lucky. The Huntsmaster glanced back, seeing only a charred crater in the wake and barely even enough remains to bury of his warriors. Jake flew up to the Red Dragon's head.

"What are you doing?" he asked in a whisper to Pyrothraxus' ear frill.

"Go, American Dragon," Pyrothraxus flatly stated. "I don't need the assistance. Go and make sure _she _makes it home safely."

"No, you need my help."

"No," he growled. "I don't. Don't argue with me. I can't do this properly with you around." Pyrothraxus turned back to Jake. "Listen, what I'm about to do is something your grandfather has never taught you. I am going to kill them. I am going to unleash every bit of my anger upon them. I'm not gonna hold back. So, I can't have you in the way. You'll get hurt. Just stay out of my way. Go home."

"Dad, Rose is down there…"

"I know," Pyrothraxus said. "I'll try to watch out for her. But I can't make that promise that she'll be safe. She knew what she was doing when she decided to come. She knew what the consequences were going to be. You have to understand that too."

"Then, it was true," he said. "You really did do those horrible things to those people back then. To Bar…"

"Now isn't the time to discuss it," the Red Dragon whispered. "Now go…"

Jake sighed and flew away, glancing behind him as fire irrupted from his father's massive jaws. His head turned towards where Rose was and he dove down to her. She ducked down, firing her staff at Pyrothraxus, though she was trying to make some of the shots miss. Jake dove and snatched her into his arms.

"What are you doing?" cried Rose.

"Make it look believable," Jake informed. Rose began to kick and punch, trying to resist the American Dragon's grip.

"Huntsgirl!" called the Huntsmaster.

"I'll not worry about her too much," Pyrothraxus growled. "Be more concerned for your own hide!"

Jake flew away, taking Rose with him. He landed a few ways away from the battle and he cringed when he heard the sound of his father angry roar. Right now, his father did not seem like his father. Jake reverted back to his human form as Rose pulled the hood off her head.

"Jake…" she said. "I'm sorry."

"You were right," he sighed. "My dad—is a horrible monster."

"No," Rose said, placing her gloved hand on his shoulder. "He isn't. Not now. But this is something he needs to work out with my uncle."

"As much as I don't like the Huntsclan, I think my dad's going a little overboard," Jake said. Then, the ground itself started to tremble. The vibrations were not coming from where Pyrothraxus and the Huntsclan were fighting; they were coming from another direction.

"Oh—no…" Rose breathed. "The mech is coming."

"Mech?" Jake asked.

"The machine my uncle built to kill your father with," she replied. "He's trying to wear your father down, make him use up his spell cache so that when the mech arrives, your father will be easier to handle—he won't be able to fight back."

"Dad…" Jake glanced back to where the fight was. He saw this massive exoskeletal structure walking upright like a man, slowly lumbering towards the battling Red Dragon. "He needs help!"

"Jake, your dad's right, this is out of your league too," Rose protested.

Jake grunted and then brought out his cell phone.

"What are you doing?" Rose asked.

"Calling my grandpa and Fu," he replied. "This isn't just Dad's fight, it's all of ours. Even if my dad did those horrible things, he doesn't deserve to go down like that."

0

"_Lao Shi's Electronics," _Fu Dog began as he picked up the phone. "I am terribly sorry, but we are now closed…Jake!"

Lao Shi glanced up from his chores of putting up some boxes on the shelf. He rushed into the office where Fu was talking on the phone, hearing the name 'Jake' called out.

"Is it Jake?" Lao Shi asked. Fu held up a paw.

"What's going on, kid?" Fu asked. "A big—what? Robot? The Huntsclan is battling your dad? They're gonna use the robot to kill Jonathan? Sure, we'll be there and we'll bring back up too. Don't worry, we'll get your dad out of the mess faster than you can say Pixie Dust!" He hung up the phone. "Big trouble there, Lao Shi. Jake says the Huntsclan has created a huge robot to kill Jonathan. Apparently, the Huntsclan hasn't forgotten the incident of Bar in France."

"_Aiyah!" _Lao Shi gasped. "I totally forgotten about what Pyrothraxus did before he became good."

"They're apparently wearing him down," said Fu. "Trying to make him use up his magical cache. Then, the big robot's gonna come in and cream Jonathan on the spot."

"As much as I don't like that guy…" Lao Shi grimaced as his form shifted into the long, sinuous, sapphire blue eastern-like dragon form of the Chinese Dragon. "He is our Forefather. He created the Young Dragons to watch over the magical world and protect it from the likes of the Huntsclan. I really don't like Jonathan, but I will assist Pyrothraxus." Lao Shi leaned down to Fu. "Contact Sun Park. The Korean Dragon must assist in this as well."

"What about Haley?" asked Fu.

"I believe she is training with Sun Park," replied Lao Shi. "We will need all the help we can get."

"Dad!" cried Susan as she came running into the store. "You gotta help Jonathan! The Huntsclan…"

"Don't worry, Susan," said Fu. "We got a call from Jake. He gave us the 411."

"We're calling Sun Park and Haley to assist as well," Lao Shi stated.

Susan shook her head in disbelief and grabbed a whisker on the blue dragon's lip: "Haley can't handle something like that robot!"

Lao Shi jerked himself from her, placing a claw on her shoulder: "She needs the training and we could use the help. We need all the help we can get."

"Fine…" she sighed, settling herself down on the couch. "I'm just—worried about Jon."

"Don't worry, Susan," said Fu. "The old man and I will give him an extra hand. Now, what potion would be good against a giant robot?" He darted for his lab, looking through his spell books for a proper brew to use. "Let's see shrinking—close…wait _shrink artifact_, ah! Here we are. Here's a spell Jonathan would love! _Polymorph Artifact _and my favorite _Polymorph Object_. Just mix a few bat wings, some werewolf fur, a dab of eye of newt…and bingo! Instant _Polymorph Object and Artifact _potion. And a giant robot is technically a huge metal golem. Man, I just hope this works…" He rushed back out where the Chinese Dragon and his daughter awaited him. "I'll probably need Jonathan's help in activating this potion since he's a master of the School of Transmutation—but if we sprinkle this on the robot, we can _polymorph _it into anything we want."

"Okay…" Susan began.

"We can easily shrink the thing, turn it literally into a toy robot," Fu called. "Make it shoot harmless sparklers instead of deadly rays. Problem solved. But this is a high level potion and it takes a high level wizard or sorcerer to activate it. Luckily, you just so happen to be married to one, Susan. What we'll need to do is distract the robot, I get Jonathan to touch the potion, speak the activation words and program the potion to turn the robot into a little Tonka Toy and _viola!_ All we have to worry about after that is the Huntsclan."

"Well done, Fu," said Lao Shi. "I've called Sun Park. She and Haley are heading down there and will meet us where Jake is."

"Well, let's hurry our butts on down there, Lao Shi," Fu said as he tucked the potion into a pouch. "Better keep this in a safe place."

"Dad…" Susan stood up. Lao Shi leaned down and took his daughter into his arms.

"We'll help Jonathan as best as we can," said Lao Shi. "I'll call you when it's over. Stay by the phone, daughter."

"I will," Susan sniffed, wiping her eyes. "I don't care what he did back then. I just want him to be safe now."

Lao Shi backed away and grabbed Fu Dog into his arms. Swiftly, the Chinese Dragon flew out the door, gaining altitude. Susan settled back down on the couch and stared down at the floor, tears streaming down her cheeks.

"Please…be okay, Jonathan," she whispered.

0

The Korean Dragon glanced over when she saw the Chinese Dragon and Fu Dog fly in. Lao Shi landed in the snow and lowered Fu to the ground. Sun Park glanced back towards the battle, hearing the sound of Pyrothraxus crashing into the ground. The mechanoid monstrosity had thrown the Crimson Dragon down to the ground. Rose hid behind a bush, hoping her uncle would not see her. Jake shifted into his dragon form and hid himself behind a tree. Haley hid with him, watching with sad eyes as her father painfully rose back onto his feet. Pyrothraxus growled as he blasted a fire ball at an arm—blowing it off of its shoulder. The arm crashed to the ground and the Red Dragon's foreclaw slammed into it, smashing it into pieces.

"We've got a potion," said Fu Dog. "What we need to do is distract the machine long enough for me to get this potion to Jonathan. He activates the potion and then I throw it on the robot and we won't have to worry about it anymore."

"Why does it require Jonathan to activate it?" Sun asked.

"Because it's a spell that I'm afraid you guys don't know and aren't powerful enough to use it," Fu replied. "A wizard like Panderus might be able to activate it, but who wants to ask him? Just fly around and distract the robot."

"Wait!" Lao Shi called. He pointed a blue claw at Pyrothraxus who started to glow brightly. The light extended out from the Red Dragon's body and changed into a myriad of colors ranging from fiery red to intense violet and white. The light formed into a bubble shield around Pyrothraxus, blinding the Huntsclan. The robot lunged for the shield, slamming its fist into the light. Then, it staggered back, thrown from the shield by an unseen force. Its fingers sparked, obviously struck by some sort of lightning bolt coming from the shield. Its metallic plating began to fizzle and drip off like acidic liquid from its forearm and fire rose up from its joints.

"You wanna know why only Pyro can activate the spell?" asked Fu Dog. "Can any of you create a _Prismatic Shield?"_

"No," Sun replied. "Our spells aren't even close to that level."

"You have to take that thing down before it takes out Jonathan!" called Rose.

"Don't worry," said Jake. "We will."

The robot flipped back and as it flipped, it fired a cannon on its one remaining arm at the shield, trying to shatter it. The shield itself curled in, revealing Pyrothraxus underneath it. Pyrothraxus inhaled as the shield transformed into a ball of prismatic light at his jaws. Then he exhaled and the ball blasted forth into a beam of prismatic light, colliding with the robot and sending it flying backwards towards the ground. Acid ate through part of the chest plate of the mech as fire burned some of the exposed tubing and lightning sizzled across its servos. Pyrothraxus stumbled forward; obviously growing weaker as he tapped into the higher level spells.

"You can't keep that up for long, dragon!" the Huntsmaster called. "Your death comes sooner than you think! You're just delaying the inevitable."

"I'm not gonna go down so easily!" Pyrothraxus bellowed.

As Pyrothraxus leapt into the sky, building up the fire in his jaws again, the robot leapt into the air with him. Before the dragon to react, the robot slammed its fist into an uppercut in his lower jaw, causing the dragon to tumble out of the sky. A foot came down and slammed into Pyrothraxus' cheek before he even hit the ground and he was sent spiraling off, smashing into the forest below. Then, the robot shot down out of the sky, ready to send the dragon flying again with another blow of its fist. Pyrothraxus glanced up and his form vanished before the robot could make contact and he reappeared behind it. A tail slashed across the back of the robot and it was batted away, rolling off onto the snowy ground. Jake gripped the trees, his eyes wide with shock as he saw a wound open up on Pyrothraxus' shoulder. Glowing, fiery-colored, lava dripped out from the wound itself. Jake realized with a gasp that the lava was in fact his father's own blood. As the blood splashed to the ground, it hissed and spurted. Fire rose up from the puddle. The Red Dragon had been wounded. Pyrothraxus reached up and touched the wound on his shoulder and he growled at the robot. The wound began to close up on its own.

"You'll have to do better than that…" he gasped. "I'm technically a god."

"Gods can die too," called the Huntsmaster. "Nothing is forever."

"Get going!" Fu called. "I don't know how much longer he can last against that thing."

Jake bounded off into the air followed by Lao Shi and Sun Park. Rose started off, firing off shots with her staff, pretending the shots were missing Pyrothraxus. The Huntsmaster could not help but to notice her shots were actually hitting his robot.

"Huntsgirl, what are you doing?!" he cried.

"The—American Dragon wounded me," she replied. "I can't aim right."

"If you're wounded, leave!" he called to her. "You're a liability anyways as you are. For some strange reason you're not trying anymore."

"Yes, sir," she nodded as she dove back into the shadows. She ran towards Fu and Haley who were still waiting for the signal to move. She knelt by Haley. "Tell Jake I'll see him tomorrow. I can't stick around here and have the Huntsmaster finding out my secret."

"I'll tell him," Haley said.

"Don't worry about it," said Fu.

"Thanks," Rose smiled as she disappeared back into the shadows.

Lao Shi and Sun Park whipped around in front of the robot before it was about to fire, breathing their fiery breaths in its face. Pyrothraxus paused noticing Jake fly up to his head.

"Jake…" he began. "What are you doing?"

"We've got a plan," he called.

"A what?" Pyrothraxus asked.

"A plan," he called again.

Pyrothraxus glanced over seeing Haley in her purple dragon form and Fu Dog running out of the woods. The robot flailed out, trying to catch the two circling dragons who continued to attack him. The Huntsmaster glanced around, noticing and Haley Fu run towards Pyrothraxus.

"The purple dragon and that dog!" he called. "Get them!"

The remaining Huntsclan dashed out, firing their staff weapons at the two magical creatures. The Huntsmaster knelt down and fired as well. Haley leaped up and dodged the green energy pulses whizzing by her. Fu ducked down and curled himself up into a ball, shaking in his skin.

"Come on, Fu!" she called, landing beside him.

"I—can't go any further," he cowered, shaking in his folds. "Take the vile…here!"

He handed her the vile and Haley took off with it. Jake, Lao Shi and Sun Park were still handling the robot. Pyrothraxus turned around, seeing the Huntsclan fire upon his daughter. He growled and snorted a fireball in their direction, sending several of them flying to the ground and leaving the others as charred soot at the foot of the massive crater his fire created.

"Daddy!" called Haley. "Listen, you gotta put a spell on this potion."

"Honey?" Pyrothraxus asked as he knelt down. "What is this?"

"It's a _Polymorph _potion," she replied. "Tell it to turn that robot into something harmless."

"Fu made a _Polymorph _potion…" he sighed. Pyrothraxus saw where Fu was, noticing the massive foot of the robot about to come down upon him. "Fu, get out of there!"

"Huh?" Fu asked as he glanced up at the metallic sole of the foot. "Ahhh!"

"Fu!" Jake cried as he dove down. He scooped up the Shar Pei into his arms and flew off just as the foot came down onto the snow, stamping it flat.

"Nice save, kid!" Fu breathed in relief. He turned back towards Pyrothraxus. "Hey, big guy! Make with the chanting!"

"What the hell does he want me to turn the robot into?" Pyrothraxus asked.

"A toy," she replied.

"What?"

"Fu wants you to turn it into a little child's toy," Haley said. "A harmless child's toy."

"Well—I guess that fits," the Red Dragon grunted. "I could turn it into a little toy Transformer or something. Alright. Give me the vile."

Haley held it up and Pyrothraxus knelt down, touching it with the tip of his talon.

"_**Si meage wux xkhat vi hentho vrak arilekkikilu,"**_he spoke in the magical language of Draconic. The liquid began to glow a soft blue light. _"I turn thee into a tiny child's toy_. Okay—just sprinkle that stuff on the robot."

"Right," she nodded. Haley fluttered around the robot's legs and opened the vile, careful not to spill it on herself. She slung the clear liquid out of the vile onto the plate of the leg of the robot.

"Back away!" called Pyrothraxus when he saw the blue glow surround the robot's body. The men inside controlling the robot began to cry out in shock and horror as the robot began to shrink down. They climbed out of the hatch at the top of the shoulder of the automaton and jumped down to the snow running for their lives. The robot finally shrunk down and then transformed. Its metallic surface became plastic and its shape became more child-friendly with flashing eyes and sparklers coming from its remaining arm. It even had D-batteries on its back. It hobbled over towards Pyrothraxus, making the winding sounds that a toy would make. Pyrothraxus growled and slammed his foot down upon the toy robot and smashed it into springs, cheep metallic and plastic shards, and washers. He then turned back to the Huntsmaster and his remaining Huntsclan. Pyrothraxus spread his wings, ready to cast his fiery tornado spell upon them.

"_Si geou lamith ekess sone douta netren," _he growled at the Huntsmaster. _"Bwoihj, si zklaen valignat astahi ekess vignar."_

"No!" Huntsmaster cried just as he saw the building fire deep inside Pyrothraxus' throat. "I won't let you win, dragon!"

"_Wux geou loreat ini sia gix!" _Pyrothraxus bellowed, his claws coming down upon the Huntsmaster.

"Dad!" cried Jake as he saw the forefoot slam onto the ground. Pyrothraxus trapped the Huntsmaster under his talons.

"Jonathan!" Lao Shi cried. Pyrothraxus snorted a flame out and it burned the mask off of the Huntsmaster. His eyes were wide when he saw the scarred face of the Huntsmaster. He could see the tips of the dragon birthmark around the bald head of the human.

"Jonathan?" the Huntsmaster asked. "Jonathan—Long?!"

"Eric McGregor," Pyrothraxus growled.

"My—best—accountant is Pyrothraxus the Red!" Eric cried. "Jonathan! Oh, you're fired. You're fired—and I'm going to enjoy killing you! Now, I know why those TPS reports were mucked up the last quarter. You're trying to bankrupt me!"

"I didn't know you were the Huntsmaster," Pyrothraxus growled. "But that doesn't mean I didn't think you were a pompous, overblown yuppie before I knew about your secret."

"Absent-minded pencil pusher!" the Huntsmaster cried. "And I've always hated that retarded smile you always had. Everyday is so bright and cheery to you. It's like you took shot of valium right before you go to work."

"Well, for some of the things I've seen, can you blame me for acing in mock cheer all the time?" Pyrothraxus asked. "My life is utter hell! Sometimes I believed it was better when I was evil. I'm being torment now for the atrocities I've done. Killing me would only set me free from them."

"Well then," the Huntsmaster panted. "You think your life is utter hell now? Wait till Monday morning."

Pyrothraxus let up for a moment as the human scooted himself out from under his claw.

"You don't want to kill me now?" he asked.

"No," Eric replied. "Killing you would be only a one time joy and satisfaction. But burying you under mounds and mounds of paperwork for the rest of your existence is much more—satisfying."

Pyrothraxus leaned up and sighed: "I think I much rather have you attempt to kill me." He growled again. "Listen, Huntsmaster. You need to know this. I'm not a bad guy anymore. In fact, I'm the only guardian of the Gate to Baator. And if you know your histories right, then you know what that is."

"I know," said Eric. "You're its guardian?"

"My punishment," said Pyrothraxus. "Unless you want to be up to your ears in magical monsters from that infernal plane, then you know you can't kill me anyways. I'm the only thing that's standing between the Gate and New York City being sucked into Nessus. You hate magical creatures, Eric. You'd hat these then."

"The last thing I want is that Gate to open up," said the Huntsmaster. "Very well, Jonathan. Looks like we have a truce. I'll no longer bother you and you'll do the same for me. But I give no truce to them…" He pointed to the American Dragon and the others.

"Fine," Pyrothraxus rumbled. "We have a truce and an understanding. But if you do harm them under my watch, the moment I appear, you leave. Understand?"

"Only by your word, Pyrothraxus," said the Huntsmaster. "And that is all. Not by theirs."

"Fair enough…" Pyrothraxus took in a deep breath.

"Huntsclan!" the Huntsmaster called as he pulled out another mask. He pulled it over his head. "Retreat." He turned back to Pyrothraxus and grinned under his mask. "See you at the office, Jonathan. I should have known you were a dragon. No human can count money the way you can. I suppose dragons do have their purpose after all…"

Then, with a laugh he and his Huntsclan disappeared into the shadow of night. The snow began to fall all around Pyrothraxus and the other dragons.

"Well, there goes my raise…" he sighed.

"Why are you worried about raises?" Lao Shi asked. "You idiot, the Huntsmaster knows your human name now!"

"I know…" he sighed. "Lao Shi, I just want to go home now. I'm—tired."

"Dad, Mom's at grandpa's store," said Jake.

"Thanx, son," Pyrothraxus said.

"Dad," began Jake. "I can't believe you managed to make a truce with the Huntsclan."

"Well, when you're as big as I am—you learn how to throw your weight around, Jake," Pyrothraxus chuckled.

"I believe that," laughed the American Dragon.

0

Jonathan Long walked into the store and went to the back. He found his wife lying down on the couch, sleeping soundly. He leaned down and gathered her into his arms. She awoke, startled by his touch.

"Jon!" she gasped.

"Hey, I'm back," Jonathan said.

"You defeated that robot?" she asked him.

"Yeah," he replied. Susan hugged him tightly. Jonathan held her in his arms, rubbing her back. Outside, Fu, Jake, Haley, and Lao Shi peaked in to see the couple in their moment. Then, they pulled away. Jake sat himself down on the chair and sighed, running his hands through his greenish-black hair.

"What am I gonna do?" he asked. "About my father?"

"Jonathan has a lot of secrets he needs to sort out with all of you," said Lao Shi. "But you must understand, Jake, that your father at first was not good. He was not good at all—he was evil. That means that he has done a lot of things that now he's not proud of. Most Red Dragons are born evil and they enjoy the acts they have caused. Your father at one time was no different. It took the love of Sayan'i and the caring guidance of O'eterus to make Pyrothraxus good."

"Why did Dad say that he is being tormented now than he was when he was evil?" Haley asked.

"Because," began Sun Park. "Hindsight is 20/20. Pyrothraxus looked back on all the ill deeds he's caused people and he is hurt by it. He means that he knows now the pain he caused many people."

"Will he ever tell us all of his secrets?" Jake asked.

"That's for Jonathan to decide," replied Lao Shi. "But remember, despite the past he lived, that is not what he is today. Today he is a caring father and a good husband. Remember that, Jake. Jonathan Long's Secrets do not make what he is today. Someday, he will tell you everything. But since he's lived such a long life, he has a lot of stories to tell."

"Yeah," Jake nodded. "I know lots of secrets."

As they were settling down for the night, talking about what could be in the future, they were being watched by a dark figure. Boney white fangs sparkled in a Cheshire-like grin as a deep voice chuckled darkly. The Dark Dragon, Ithfaedeus the Black, watched the little shop with glee.

"Soon, dear Pyrothraxus…" he began. "Your secrets will all be revealed—including the spell to open the Gate to Baator. And your dear brother Zestos will be freed."

**The End?**


	11. Author's Notes

Well, this ends the first book of Jonathan Long's Secret…or the Crimson Dragon as it has been called. I'll write more on Jonathan sooner or later and it'll be about Jonathan trying to defend the Gate to Baator from the Dark Dragon, aka Ithfaedeus and his lackey Chang. Well, I hope you enjoyed this rather DIFFERENT story on the American Dragon: Jake Long story—especially making his father into a dragon. Yay secrets.


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